The 
NewCentury 

Bible 


Psalms 
Voll 


Division 
Section 


Volumes  already  published  or  in  preparation  : — 
NEW    TESTAMENT. 

1.  MATTHEW,  by  Prof.  W.  F.  Slater,  M.A. 

2.  MARK,  by  Principal  Salmond,  D.D. 

3.  LUKE,  by  Principal  W.  F.  Adeney,  M.A.,  D.D. 

4.  JOHN,  by  the  Rev.  J.  A.  McClymont,  D.D. 

5.  ACTS,  by  Prof.  J.  VERNON  Bartlet,  M.A.,  D.D. 

6.  ROMANS,  by  the  Rev.  A.  E.  Garvie,  M.A.,  D.D. 

7.  I  AND  II  CORINTHIANS,  bv  Prof.  J.  Massie,  M.A.,  D.D. 

8.  EPHESIANS,  COLOSSIANS,  PHILEMON,  PHILIP- 

PIANS,  by  the  Rev.G.  CuRRiE  Martin,  M.A.,  B.D. 

9.  I  AND  II  THESSALONIANS,  GALATIANS,  by  Prin- 

cipal W.  F.  Adeney,  M.A.,  D.D. 

10.  THE   PASTORAL    EPISTLES,   by  the  Rev.    R.   F. 

Horton,  M.A.,  D.D. 

11.  HEBREWS,  by  Prof.  A.  S.  Peake,  M.A. 

12.  THE  GENERAL  EPISTLES,  by  Prof.  W.  H.  Bennett, 

Litt.D.,  D.D. 

13.  REVELATION,  by  the  Rev.  C.  Anderson  Scott,  M.A. 


OLD    TESTAMENT. 
GENESIS,  by  the  Rev.  Prof.  W,  H.  Bennett,  Litt.D.,  D.D. 
JUDGES  and  RUTH,  by  the  Rev.  G.  W.  Thatcher, 

M.A..  B.D. 
I  and  II  SAMUEL,  by  the  Rev.  Prof.  A.  R.  S.  Kennedy, 

M.A.,  D.D. 
JOB,  by  Prof  A.  S.  PeAKE,  M.A. 
I  AND  II  KINGS,  by  the  Rev.  Prof.  Skinner,  D.D. 
PSALMS  (Vol.  I)  I  TO  LXXII,  by  the  Rev.  Prof.  Davison, 

M.A.,  D.D. 
PSALMS  (Vol.  II)  LXXIII  to  END,  by  the  Rev.  Prof. 

T.  WiTTON  Davies,  B.A.,  Ph.D. 
ISAIAH,  by  the  Rev.  Principal  WhitehOUSE,  M.A.,  D.D. 
MINOR    PROPHETS:    HosEA,   Joel,    Amos,    Obadiah, 

Jonah,  Micah,  by  the  Rev.  R.  F.  Horton,  M.A.,  D.D. 
MINOR   PROPHETS :   Nahum,  Habakkuk,  Zephaniah, 

Haggai,  Zechariah,    Malachi,   by  the  Rev.  Canon 

Driver,  Litt.D.,  D.D. 


THE   NEW-CENTURY   BIBLE 
THE    BOOK    OF    PSALMS 

I  — LXXII 


OXFORD 
HORACE  HART,    PRINTER  TO  THE  UNIVERSITY 


General  Editor  : 
Principal  Walter  F.  Adeney,  M.A.,  D.D. 


^Pe  gp0afm0 


I— LXXII 


INTRODUCTION 

REVISED  VERSION  WITH   NOTES 

AND   INDEX 


EDITEp^-BY 

REV.  PROFESSOR  DAVISON,  M.A,  D.D. 

TUTOR  IN  SYSTEMATIC  THEOLOGY,    HANDSWORTH  COLLEGE, 

BIRMINGHAM;     AUTHOR    OF    'THE    PRAISES    OF 

ISRAEL,'    'WISDOM- LITERATURE  OF  THE 

OLD  TESTAMENT,'  ETC. 


VOL.    I 


N    3  1910     * 


NEW  YORK:   HENRY  FROWDE 

OXFORD   UNIVERSITY   PRESS,    AMERICAN   BRANCH 

EDINBURGH  :   T.  C.  &  E.  C.  JACK 


The  Revised  Version  is  printed  by  permission  of  the 
Universities  of  Oxford  and  Cambridge 


CONTENTS 

PAGE 

Editor's  Introduction i 

Text  of  the  Revised  Version  with  Annotations      .  45 

Notes  :    A.  Names  of  God     ......  358 

B.  Use  of  the  term  '  Chasid  '    .         .         .         .  360 

C.  The  Cherubim     ......  361 

Index 363 


THE  BOOK  OF  PSALMS 

I  —  LXXII 
INTRODUCTION 


'Although  all  Divine  Scripture  doth  breathe  the  grace  of 
God,  yet  sweet  beyond  all  others  is  the  Book  of  Psalms.' 

Ambrose. 

*  Psalmody  is  the  soul's  fair  weather,  the  arbiter  of  peace. 
It  healeth  the  soul's  ancient  and  inveterate  wounds ;  .  .  .  the 
sick  it  cherisheth,  the  whole  it  doth  preserve.  It  softeneth 
the  angry  and  doth  sober  the  intemperate.' — Basil. 

'You  may  rightly  call  the  Psalter  a  Bible  in  miniature.' 

Luther. 

'  The  choice  and  flower  of  all  things  profitable  in  other 
books  the  Psalms  do  both  more  briefly  contain  and  more 
movingly  express.  .  .  .  What  is  there  necessary  for  man  to 
know  which  the  Psalms  are  not  able  to  teach  ? ' — Hooker. 

*  The  Psalms  stand  up  like  a  pillar  of  fire  and  light  in  the 
history  of  the  early  world.  They  lift  us  at  once  into  an 
atmosphere  of  religious  thought  which  is  the  highest  that 
man  has  ever  reached.  They  come  with  all  the  characteristic 
affections  and  emotions  of  humanity,  everything  that  is  deepest, 
tenderest,  most  pathetic,  most  aspiring,  along  with  all  the 
plain  realities  of  man's  condition  and  destiny,  into  the 
presence  of  the  living  God.' — R.  W.  Church. 


THE  BOOK  OF  PSALMS 

I  —  LXXII 

INTRODUCTION 

According  to  the  old  interpreters,  it  is  the  province 
of  Biblical  Introduction  to  answer  seven  questions  con- 
cerning the  composition  of  each  Book  of  the  Bible — Who 
wrote  it  ?  When  ?  Where  ?  For  what  end  ?  and  the  like. 
Such  questions  are  always  easier  to  ask  than  to  answer ; 
but  in  the  case  of  the  Psalms  as  understood  by  modern 
scholarship,  the  difficulties  are  peculiarly  great,  perhaps 
insuperable. 

An  attempt  is  made,  however,  to  answer  these  questions 
as  far  as  possible,  partly  in  this  general  introduction, 
partly  in  the  detailed  introductions  prefixed  to  the  several 
Psalms.  And,  in  the  prevailing  uncertainty  and  diversity 
of  opinion,  the  author  has  tried  to  do  two  things— to  give 
a  general  idea  of  the  views  accepted  by  recent  critics, 
both  the  more  conservative  and  the  more  advanced,  and 
briefly  to  state  his  own  opinion,  without  attempting  to 
give  his  full  reasons.  Thus  the  reader  will  at  the  same 
time  receive  a  measure  of  guidance,  yet  have  some 
opportunity  of  judging  for  himself. 

The  notes  appended  to  each  Psalm  are  necessarily 
brief.  Attention  has  largely  been  concentrated  upon 
exegesis  pure  and  simple,  a  discussion  of  the  best  trans- 
lation available,  with  special  emphasis  upon  the  renderings 
of  the  Revised  Version  both  in  text  and  margin.  The 
latter,  it  need  hardly  be  said,  forms  an  integral  part  of 
the  Version,  and  is  often  more  valuable  than  the  text 
itself. 

B   2 


4  BOOK   OF   PSALMS  (1-72) 

I.  The  Name  and  Character  of  the  Book. 

The  Book  of  Psalms  is  a  collection  of  a  hundred  and 
fifty  sacred  songs  or  poems,  selected  from  Hebrew  liter- 
ature, extending  over  several  centuries  and  arranged 
with  care  for  a  specific  purpose.  Ewald  has  said,  '  We 
possess  in  the  present  Psalter  the  flower  of  the  lyrical 
poetry  of  the  Hebrews  most  suitable  for  public  edification 
and  instruction,  out  of  all  centuries  from  David  down  to 
the  latest  times.'  If  we  change  the  phraseology  into 
'  suitable  for  public  worship  and  instruction,'  with  an 
emphasis  on  worship^  the  definition  will  be  more  accurate. 
The  collection  was  not  intended  for  worship  alone,  but 
that  it  is  suited  first  and  chiefly  for  the  service  of  the 
temple  is  attested  both  by  its  character  and  its  history. 

The  name  by  which  it  is  known  among  the  Jews  is 
*  Praises '  or  '  Book  of  Praises,'  but  the  word  Tehillivi^  thus 
appropriately  employed,  is  not  the  one  recognized  in  the 
Book  itself,  only  one  Psalm  (cxlv)  being  thus  designated. 
Two  other  words,  Mizmor  and  Shir^  which  are  currently 
used  in  the  titles,  are  better  rendered  by  the  English  'song': 
the  former  indicating  a  composition  to  be  sung  to  a 
musical  accompaniment,  and  the  latter  being  a  more 
general  name,  applicable  as  well  to  secular  lyrics.  The 
one  name  given  in  the  Book  itself  to  a  collection  of  Psalms 
is  *  prayers,'  as  in  the  note  at  the  end  of  Ps.  Ixxii,  '  The 
prayers  of  David  the  son  of  Jesse  are  ended.'  The  use 
of  the  word  is  significant,  for  a  considerable  proportion  of 
the  Psalms  thus  styled  *  prayers  of  David '  can  hardly  be 
described  as  direct  invocations  of  God.  But  the  spirit  of 
the  Psalter  is  one  of  prayer  throughout,  and  a  large  part 
of  its  contents  is  prayer  pure  and  simple.  As  Augustine 
in  his  Confessions  writes,  so  to  speak,  on  his  knees,  and 
reviews  his  whole  life  as  in  the  sight  of  God,  from  time 
to  time  directly  addressing  Him,  so  the  Psalmist,  when 
rehearsing  the  history  of  Israel,  or  recalling  his  own 
experiences,  or  contemplating  the  glories  of  nature,  has 
God  ever  in   mind,  and  every  line  is  perfumed  with  the 


INTRODUCTION  5 

incense  of  supplication.  Complaints  lose  all  character  of 
murmuring,  and  joy  is  hallowed  into  thanksgiving,  when 
both  are  reverently  uttered  in  the  inner  chamber  and 
poured  into  the  ear  of  a  gracious  God. 

It  would  be  a  mistake  to  use  any  descriptive  title  for 
the  Book  which  would  narrow  the  breadth  of  its  scope  or 
the  comprehensiveness  of  its  range.  It  is  didactic,  lyric, 
elegiac,  by  turns  ;  it  is  various  as  human  life,  and  its  main 
feature  is  the  bringing  of  human  history  with  all  its  joys 
and  sorrows,  hopes  and  fears,  struggles  and  achievements, 
into  the  presence  of  God  and  the  light  of  religion.  The 
Book  of  Psalms  is — itself.  It  refuses  to  be  pressed  exactly 
into  any  one  of  the  categories  which  the  ingenious 
classifiers  of  similar  literary  compositions  have  devised. 
Happily  it  has  in  English  a  distinctive  name  of  its  own, 
derived  from  the  Greek,  one  by  which  through  all  time 
it  will  probably  be  distinguished. 

The  place  occupied  by  the  Book  in  the  Canon  of  the 
Old  Testament  is  this.  The  first  portion  of  the  Hebrew 
Scriptures  to  be  collected  and  arranged  was  the  '  Law/ 
comprising  the  five  Books  of  the  Pentateuch.  Next,  after 
the  interval  of  a  century,  came  the  *  Prophets,'  including 
the  Books  which  we  call  historical,  as  well  as  those  directly 
prophetical.  To  the  third  part  of  the  Canon  no  distinctive 
name  was  given ;  it  is  known  in  Hebrew  as  Kethubi?n^ 
'writings,'  in  Greek  as  Hagiographa,  'sacred  writings,' 
and  in  this  portion  the  Psalter  has  usually  occupied  the 
first  place  in  order,  as  for  many  reasons  it  is  the  most 
important.  This  is  suggested  by  our  Lord's  words  in 
Luke  xxiv.  44,  where  he  speaks  of  the  things  *  written  in 
the  law  of  Moses,  and  the  prophets,  and  the  psalms,  con- 
cerning me.'  Such  a  book  obviously  claims  a  position  of 
its  own  in  the  Canon  of  sacred  Scripture.  As  the  Law 
is  mainly  the  declaration  of  God's  will  concerning  the 
duties  of  Israel,  as  the  histories  contain  the  account  of 
His  dealings  with  the  chosen  people,  as  prophecy  is  the 
inspired  utterance  of  holy  men  speaking  in  His  name,  so 


6  BOOK   OF    PSALMS  (1-72) 

the  Psalms  exhibit  the  hght  of  Israel's  religion  as  reflected 
in  the  hearts  and  experience  of  its  faithful  sons.  Thus 
*  what  the  heart  is  in  man,  the  Psalter  is  in  the  Bible.' 

II.  Formation  of  the  Psalter. 

How  came  the  Book  to  be  what  it  is?  What  is  the 
history  of  its  compilation,  or  rather  its  growth,  for  a  book 
of  this  kind  possesses  a  life  of  its  own,  and  cannot  be 
artificially  produced  by  any  literary  machinery  or  appar- 
atus ? 

In  the  Hebrew  Bible,  as  now  in  our  Revised  Version, 
the  Psalms  are  divided  into  five  Books,  Pss.  i-xlii,  xliii- 
Ixxii,  Ixxiii-lxxxix,  xc-cvi,  cvii-cl.  This  division  was 
known  in  the  Christian  Church  as  early  as  the  second 
century,  and  it  obtained  still  earlier  among  the  Jews.  It 
is  recognized  in  the  Midrash,  which  compares  the  five 
Books  of  the  Law  given  by  Moses  to  the  five  Books  of 
Psalms  given  by  David.  The  close  of  each  Book  is 
marked  by  a  doxology,  a  practice  not  uncommon  in  the 
East,  as  Prof  Robertson  Smith  has  shown  in  the  case  of 
certain  collections  of  Arabic  poems.  This  division  into 
five  parts  must  have  been  made  early,  because  it  is  sub- 
stantially recognized  in  the  LXX  Version.  But  it  does 
not  follow  that  it  was  made  when  the  Psalter  was  first 
formed,  still  less  that  it  corresponds  exactly  to  successiA-e 
stages  in  the  history  of  the  collections.  There  are  indeed 
several  evidences  to  the  contrary. 

Closer  examination  reveals  indications  of  a  gradual 
formation  out  of  existing  collections  on  somewhat  different 
lines.  We  may  point  first  to  the  'editorial  note,'  as  it 
may  be  called,  appended  to  Ps.  Ixxii.  It  shows  that  at 
this  point  ends  a  certain  collection  of  *  Davidic '  com- 
positions, and  the  writer  knew  of  no  other  Psalms  which 
went  by  the  name  of  David.  Another  practical  proof 
lies  in  the  existence  of  duplicate  forms  of  the  same  Psalm : 
compare  Ps.  xiv  with  liii,  xl.  13-17  with  Ixx,  and  cviii  with 
Ivii.  7-u  and  Ix.  5-12.     The  conclusion  we  should  draw 


INTRODUCTION  7 

from  the  latter  fact  is  strengthened  when  we  observe  that 
with  substantially  the  same  subject-matter  a  different 
name  for  God  is  used ;  the  same  Psalm  being  therefore 
used  on  different  occasions  by  different  editors  in  arrang- 
ing independent  collections.  This  variation  in  the  name 
of  God  cannot  be  quite  satisfactorily  accounted  for,  but  it 
is  certain  it  does  not  occur  by  chance.  In  Book  I  the 
name  Yahweh  (Jehovah)  occurs  272  times,  Elohim  only 
15  times  ;  while  in  Book  II  Elohim  is  found  164  times 
and  Yahweh  only  30  times.  In  Book  III  the  names  are 
more  evenly  distributed  ;  but  it  is  found  that  if  the  Book 
be  divided  into  two  parts  at  Ps.  Ixxxiii,  a  similar  division 
into  Yahwistic  and  Elohistic  sections  is  discernible,  while 
in  Books  IV  and  V  the  name  Yahweh  decidedly  pre- 
dominates. 

Other  indications  of  gradual  compilation  are  found  in 
the  titles,  which  will  be  more  fully  discussed  in  the  next 
section.  It  is  sufficient  here  to  observe  that  almost  all 
the  Psalms  in  Book  I  are  assigned  to  David,  a  group  of 
eight  Korahitic  Psalms  occurs  in  Pss.  xlii-xlix,  and  eleven 
Asaphic  Psalms  in  Ixxii-lxxxiii.  Another  group  of 
'  Davidic  '  compositions  is  found  in  Pss.  li-lxx,  while  from 
Ps.  xc  onwards  titles  are  rare,  the  Psalms  being  for  the  most 
part  what  the  Jews  called  '  orphans  '—  as  we  say,  anony- 
mous. The  subscription  to  Ps.  Ixxii,  'The  prayers  of  David 
the  son  of  Jesse  are  ended,'  is  now  appended  to  a  Book 
which  contains  Psalms  assigned  to  Asaph  and  the  sons  of 
Korah,  but  Ewald's  conjecture  has  been  generally  ac- 
cepted that  Pss.  xlii-1  once  stood  after  the  Psalm  now 
numbered  Ixxii.  The  following  represents  in  outline  the 
history  of  the  formation  of  the  Psalter,  as  far  as  it  is 
possible  for  us  to  conjecture  and  reproduce  it. 

1.  The  earliest  collection  consisted  of  Pss.  iii-xli :  it  was 
formed  soon  after  the  Exile,  but  contained  many  earlier 
compositions,  probably  from  the  time  of  David  onwards. 

2.  Another  *  Davidic '  collection,  Pss.  li-lxxii,  with  the 
subscription  Ixxii.  20. 


8  BOOK   OF   PSALMS  (1-72) 

3.  Certain  Levitical  collections,  Pss.  xlii-xlix  being  Kora- 
hitic,  1  and  Ixxiii-lxxxiii  Asaphic,  Ixxxiv-lxxxviii  Korahitic, 
and  Ixxxix  '  of  Ethan.' 

4.  A  process  of  arrangement  of  (2)  and  (3),  perhaps 
by  an  Elohistic  editor,  Pss.  Ixxxiv-lxxxix  being  added  as 
a  Yahwistic  supplement. 

5.  Sundry  short,  independent  groups  or  collections  of 
Psalms  are  discernible,  of  which  the  Hallel,  Pss.  cxi-cxviii, 
and  the  Songs  of  Ascents,  cxx-cxxxiv,  are  specimens. 

6.  From  these,  together  with  a  considerable  number  of 
scattered  Psalms,  a  large  and  generally  homogeneous 
collection  was  formed,  including  Pss.  xc-cl,  the  greater 
part  of  which  were  composed  for  purposes  of  public  worship. 

7.  Thus  far  we  find  the  Psalter  divided  into  three  parts, 
viz.  Pss.  i-xli,  xlii-lxxxix,  xc-cl.  At  a  later  stage  the 
division  into  five  Books  was  effected,  a  break  being  made 
at  Ps.  Ixxii  and  again  at  cvi,  suitable  doxologies  being 
arranged  at  the  close  of  each.  It  is  not  possible  to  be 
sure  what  portion  of  the  editing— e.g.  the  prefixing  of 
Ps.  i  and  the  affixing  of  doxologies — was  done  at  the 
formation  of  the  smaller  groups  and  what  at  the  final 
stage  ;  nor  is  it  easy  to  say  how  far  Psalms  of  compar- 
atively late  origin  may  have  been  inserted  in  collections 
formed  earlier. 

Such  an  outline  is  necessarily  speculative  in  character. 
But  good  reasons  may  be  assigned  for  marking  out  each 
one  of  the  lines  of  cleavage  indicated ;  and  the  history 
of  later  hymn-books,  e.g.  'Wesley's  Hymns,'  'Hymns 
Ancient  and  Modern,'  and  Sankey's  collection,  presents 
similar  phenomena  on  a  humbler  scale. 

The  present  arrangement,  therefore,  is  chronological 
only  in  broadest  outline.  For  the  most  part,  the  earlier 
Psalms  and  collections  are  placed  first,  and  personal 
Psalms  occur  as  a  rule  earlier  in  the  Psalter,  while  those 
dealing  with  national  history  or  expressly  composed  for 
liturgical  purposes  are  found  in  the  later  Books.  But  all 
such  principles  of   association — if  they  may  be  called 


INTRODUCTION  9 

principles— are  vague  in  character  and  loosely  applied. 
Sufficient  has  been  said  to  show  that  the  collection  had 
a  long  history,  some  features  of  which  it  is  possible  to 
recognize.  It  is  not  surprising  if  this  history  cannot 
now  be  exactly  traced,  and  it  would  be  a  mistake  to 
suppose  that  all  the  details  of  arrangement  were  carried 
out  by  rule.  But  the  study  of  the  last  fifty  years  has  done 
more  to  elucidate  the  subject  than  previous  centuries,  and 
it  is  not  improbable  that  more  light  still  may  be  shed 
upon  it  ere  long. 

When  did  the  final  process  of  collection  begin?  As- 
suming for  the  moment  that  as  there  were  many  sacred 
poems  already  in  existence,  so  some  of  these  may  have 
been  previously  gathered  into  smaller  collections  not  now 
traceable,  and  taking  the  Psalter  as  we  have  it,  the  first 
division  containing  Pss.  i-xli  must  be  post-Exilic.  The 
evidence,  as  drawn  from  Pss.  i,  xiv,  xxv  and  others,  will 
be  pointed  out  in  the  notes.  It  is  also  independently 
probable  that  at  such  a  period,  shortly  after  the  return 
from  captivity,  some  such  work  would  be  undertaken. 

It  is  not  easy  to  say  when  the  process  ended,  i.e.  to  fix 
the  limit  beyond  which  no  addition  was  made.  But 
there  are  data  which  enable  us  to  determine  with  some 
certainty  the  period  when  this  work  was  practically  com- 
plete.    For  example : — 

1.  The  passage  i  Mace.  vii.  17,  written  about  100  B.C., 
quotes  Ps.  Ixxix  as  Scripture.  This  implies  that  the 
Psalm  had  been  for  some  time  included  in  a  recognized 
collection. 

2.  The  prologue  to  the  Book  of  Ecclesiasticus,  written 
B.C.  132,  cites  the  fact  that  in  the  time  of  the  writer's 
grandfather,  Jesus  the  Son  of  Sirach  (about  180  B.C.), 
a  division  of  the  Scriptures  into  a  kind  of  threefold  Canon, 
*  the  law,  the  prophets  and  the  other  books  of  our  fathers,' 
was  recognized,  and  a  Greek  translation  of  these  books 
was  current  in  his  own  time.  That  is,  as  Prof.  Robertson 
Smith  has  said,  'the  Hebrew  Psalter  was  completed  and 


lo  BOOK   OF    PSALMS  (1-72) 

recognized  as  an  authoritative  collection  long  enough 
before  130  B.C.  to  allow  of  its  passing  to  the  Hellenistic 
Jews  of  Alexandria.' 

3.  The  recent  discovery  of  the  Hebrew  text  of  Ecclesi- 
asticus  has  brought  to  light  a  passage  in  which  several 
Psalms  (cxxi,  cxxxv,  cxlviii,  and  others)  are  either  imitated 
or  quoted  verbatim,, 

4.  The  evidence  of  i  Chron.  xvi  shows  that  the  writer 
(about  300  B.C.)  had  before  him  Pss.  cv,  xcvi  and  cvi, 
considerable  portions  of  which  he  incorporates  into  his 
text. 

5.  The  fact  that  the  Greek  translators  (say  about 
160  B.C.)  did  not  understand  the  musical  and  other  notes 
prefixed  to  the  Psalms  shows  that  at  that  time  these  must 
have  been  ancient.  This  is  confirmed  by  the  absence  of 
titles  which  marks  the  later  portion  of  the  Psalter. 

6.  The  processes  of  collecting,  arranging,  prefixing 
titles,  appending  editorial  notes  and  translating  into 
Greek — which  implies  that  the  authority  of  the  books 
translated  was  fairly  well  established — demand  a  con- 
siderable period  for  their  accomplishment  before  the  final 
result  was  reached. 

7.  Certain  other  Psalms  have  come  down  to  us,  known 
as  '  Psalms  of  Solomon '  or  *  Psalms  of  the  Pharisees,' 
the  date  of  which  can  be  fixed  with  tolerable  certainty 
as  about  60  B.C.  The  difference  between  these  and  the 
latest  compositions  in  the  Psalter  is  very  great.  Their 
tone  on  such  subjects  as  the  Messiah,  the  doctrine  of 
angels  and  a  future  life,  makes  it  certain  that  a  very  con- 
siderable interval  of  time  must  have  elapsed  for  such 
change  of  beliefs  to  have  come  about.  Prof.  Kirkpatrick 
says  that  *they  are  separated  from  the  Psalter  by  an 
impassable  gulf.* 

In  the  light  of  these  facts— to  which  sufficient  weight 
has  hardly  been  attached  by  the  less  conservative  critics — 
it  would  appear  most  likely  that  the  Psalter  was  practically 
complete  by  180  B.  c,  or  thereabouts.    This  is  not  intended 


INTRODUCTION  ii 

to  prejudge  the  question  as  to  the  admission  of  Maccabaean 
PsalmSj  on  which  something  will  be  said  later.  It  does, 
however,  preclude  the  attempts  recently  made  to  assign 
a  considerable  portion  of  the  Psalter— according  to  one  or 
two  critics  nearly  the  whole— to  the  period  B.C.  160-150. 
The  process  of  collection  then  appears  to  have  ranged 
through  about  three  centuries  from  450  to  180  B.C. 

III.  The  Titles. 

Prefixed  to  a  large  number  of  Psalms,  especially  in  the 
first  half  of  the  Book,  are  certain  inscriptions,  or  notes, 
or  titles.  These  do  not  form  a  part  of  the  Psalm  itself, 
but  were  added,  though  in  comparatively  ancient  times. 
Some  of  them  indicate  authorship,  directly  or  indirectly, 
others  refer  to  time  of  composition,  while  many  have  to 
do  with  the  musical  setting  of  the  Psalm  for  worship. 

One  Psalm  (xc)  is  attributed  to  Moses,  seventy-three 
to  David  (fifty-five  of  these  in  the  first  two  Books),  two  to 
Solomon,  twelve  to  Asaph,  eleven  to  the  sons  of  Korah, 
one  to  Heman,  and  one  to  Ethan.  The  LXX  Version 
ascribes  twelve  more  Psalms  to  David  than  does  the 
Hebrew,  while  others  are  attributed  to  Jeremiah,  Haggai, 
and  Zechariah. 

It  is  not  certain  that  the  preposition  translated  *of' 
means  *  composed  by.'  It  may  mean  this,  and  in  many 
cases  is  evidently  intended  to  do  so.  But  this  can  hardly 
be  supposed  when  the  '  sons  of  Korah '  are  named,  and  it 
is  clear  that  some  latitude  must  be  allowed.  It  is  par- 
ticularly to  be  observed  that  it  was  a  later  rule  amongst 
the  Jews  that  a  Psalm  without  the  name  of  an  author  was 
to  be  ascribed  to  the  author  named  in  the  Psahn  nearest 
preceding,  and  it  is  very  likely  that  in  a  collection  generally 
named  '  of  David '  all  Psalms  would  be  ascribed  to  him, 
and  these  would  bear  his  name  if  transferred  to  another 
collection,  or  used  by  another  editor.  The  writer  of 
Ps.  kxii.  20  knew  of  a  certain  collection  as  '  prayers  of 


12  BOOK   OF   PSALMS  (1-72) 

David,'  and  any  Psalm  from  this  or  any  similar  collection 
would  naturally  come  to  be  known  as  a  Psalm  '  of  David ' 
and  would  be  so  quoted,  e.g.  Ps.  cviii.  In  Heb.  iv.  7 
the  whole  Psalter  is  described  as  *  David ' ;  and  the  book 
called  *  Wesley's  Hymns '  from  the  first  contained  some 
compositions  by  other  authors,  many  of  them  edited  and 
modified  by  John  Wesley  himself,  whilst  in  later  editions 
the  proportion  of  Charles  Wesley's  hymns  has  been 
decidedly  diminished. 

It  is  noticeable  that  no  author  is  named  after  the  time 
of  Solomon,  and  that  in  2  Chron.  xxix.  30  it  is  said  that 
Hezekiah  commanded   the  Levites   to  praise  the   Lord 

*  with  the  words  of  David,  and  of  Asaph  the  seer.'  The 
fact  that  in  the  LXX  some  of  these  titles  are  combined  in 
an  inconsistent  way  shows,  as  do  a  few  of  the  Hebrew 
titles,  that  traditions  were  preserved,  even  when  they 
were  not  understood. 

Examination  of  these  titles  shows  that  their  evidence  is 
generally  uncritical,  in  many  cases  quite  misleading,  and 
as  a  whole  is  of  little  value.  A  number  of  Psalms 
attributed  to  David  were  certainly  not  written  by  him, 
and  in  the  case  of  many  others  the  probabilities  are 
decidedly  against  such  a  supposition.  The  Aramaisms, 
or  debased  Hebrew,  of  Ps.  cxxxix,  the  tame  and  compo- 
site character  of  such  Psalms  as  Ixxxvi,  put  Davidic 
authorship  out  of  the  question.  Acrostics  such  as  Pss. 
XXV,  xxxiv  and  xxxvii  can  hardly  have  been  his.  It  is 
questionable  whether    the    use  of  the  word    translated 

*  temple,*  e.  g.  in  Pss.  v  and  xxvii,  is  not  decisive  against 
Davidic  authorship,  and  similar  doubt  exists  in  relation 
to  the  phrase  '  holy  hill'  But  the  decision  does  not  turn 
upon  the  use  of  single  expressions.  The  reader  has  only 
to  consider  carefully  the  whole  situation  described,  or 
implied,  in  the  majority  of  *  Davidic '  Psalms,  to  see  that 
they  are  not  suitable  to  David  at  all,  either  as  a  fugitive 
from  Saul  or  as  a  victorious  monarch  and  founder  of  a 
dynasty.     Pss.  xx  and  xxi  refer   to  a  king,  but  were 


INTRODUCTION 


13 


almost  certainly  not  written  by  a  king.  Many  Psalms 
describe  the  fearfulness  of  a  sufferer  under  an  oppressive 
government  such  as  David  could  never  have  felt,  and  it 
requires  serious  straining  of  language  to  make  some  of 
the  Psalms  supposed  to  be  written  during  Saul's  per- 
secution to  fit  the  situation  at  all.  And  in  other  cases, 
whilst  certain  expressions  in  a  Psalm  might  have  been 
used  by  David— e.g.  Pss.  Iv.  12,  13  in  relation  to 
Ahithophel— other  parts  of  it  would  have  been  quite 
inappropriate  in  his  lips. 

Some  of  the  Psalms  'of  Asaph'  (Ixxiv,  Ixxix,  Ixxx) 
obviously  refer  to  the  destruction  of  Jerusalem  or  to  the 
Exile,  if  not  to  a  later  period,  while  at  least  some  of  those 
attributed  to  David  must  have  been  written  in  whole  or 
in  part  after  the  return  from  captivity. 

Under  these  circumstances  we  conclude  that  for  the 
determination  of  authorship  the  titles  are  quite  un- 
trustworthy. It  does  not  follow,  however,  that  they  are 
useless.  The  phrase  'of  the  sons  of  Korah'  almost 
certainly  points  to  a  collection  of  Psalms  bearing  that 
name,  either  written  or  preserved  by  members  of  the 
Levitical  guild  or  family  of  Korah,  and  the  name  of  Asaph 
may  be  similarly  used.  And  the  title  'of  Solomon' 
attached  to  Pss.  Ixxii  and  cxxvii  may  point  to  the  fact 
that  the  mention  of  '  the  king's  son '  and  the  '  building  of 
the  house '  suggested  Solomon's  name. 

Some  thirteen  titles  refer  to  the  occasion  on  which  the 
Psalm  was  supposed  to  be  written,  and  these  all  refer  to 
David.  Eight  Psalms — vii,  xxxiv.  Hi,  liv,  Ivi,  Ivii,  iix  and 
cxlii— are  assigned  to  the  time  of  Saul's  persecution ; 
Pss.  xviii  and  Ix  to  his  victories  ;  Ps.  li  to  his  great  sin ; 
Pss.  iii  and  Ixiii  to  his  flight  from  Absalom.  On  this  the 
most  that  can  be  said  is  that  in  some  cases  there  is  a 
probability  in  the  theory  of  the  title,  while  in  other  cases 
the  supposition  is  wellnigh  impossible.  Each  case  will 
be  discussed  in  the  introduction  to  the  Psalm  in 
question. 


14  BOOK   OF    PSALMS  (1-72) 

The  titles  which  refer  to  the  musical  setting  or  liturgical 
use  of  the  Psalms  require  separate  consideration.  Two  of 
the  most  common  phrases  found  in  the  Psalms— the  latter 
not  in  the  titles — are  For  the  chief  Musician  and  Selah. 
The  former  is  found  fifty-five  times,  almost  entirely  in  the 
first  three  Books.  It  is  tolerably  certain  that  the  word 
here  used  means  the  precentor  or  conductor  of  the  tpmple- 
choir,  whilst  the  meaning  of  the  preposition  is  not  so  clear. 
It  has  usually  been  understood  to  indicate  that  the  Psalm 
was  intended  for  use  in  the  temple  services.  It  has  been 
objected,  however,  that  in  that  case  we  might  expect  to 
find  it  frequently  prefixed  to  the  later  Psalms,  as  these  are 
eminently  liturgical  in  character,  and  that  '  for '  should  be 
ren^dered  'of,'  and  understood  to  mean  that  the  Psalm  in 
question  belonged  to  an  older  book  known  as  *The 
Precentor's  Collection.*  This  argument  from  silence  in  the 
later  Books  would,  however,  prove  too  much,  since  almost 
all  musical  notation  is  absent  from  Books  IV  and  V.  The 
proof  which  the  word  affords  of  the  close  connexion  be- 
tween the  Psalms  and  the  worship  of  the  temple  remains 
the  same  in  either  case. 

The  word  'Selah'  is  found  seventy-one  times  in  the 
Psalter,  usually  only  once  or  twice  in  each  Psalm,  though 
occasionally  oftener.  Most  of  the  Psalms  in  which  it  occurs 
are  in  the  earlier  Books,  and  nearly  all  are  of  those  marked 
*For  the  Precentor.'  It  is  now  generally  agreed  that 
Selah  is  a  musical  term,  a  direction  as  to  the  style  of  the 
interlude  or  accompaniment  to  be  played  by  instruments 
at  the  point  in  question.  The  Greek  translation  diapsalma 
points  in  this  direction,  but  some  other  versions  and  the 
ancient  Jewish  traditions  give  the  meaning  'for  ever,' 
which  has  no  etymological  support  and  is  probably 
erroneous.  The  word  furnishes  another  illustration  of  the 
obscurity  which  early  gathered  round  the  musical  notation 
of  the  Jews,  but  we  shall  probably  not  be  far  wrong  if 
we  understand  Selah  as  a  direction  to  the  musicians  to 
strike  up  more  loudly  during  an  interval  of  singing,  or 


INTRODUCTION  15 

while  the  singing  proceeded.  It  has  also  been  suggested 
that  the  direction  was  rather  to  singers  than  players,  and 
that  at  the  point  marked  by  the  word,  the  congregation 
were  to  chant  a  response  or  a  benediction.  When  the 
instances  in  which  Selah  occurs  are  carefully  examined, 
it  is  very  difficult  to  generalize — to  perceive,  that  is,  any 
special  features  which  the  passages  have  in  common, 
which  would  make  an  interlude  or  a  *  forte'  accompani- 
ment appropriate.  The  word  does  indeed  almost  always 
occur  at  the  end  of  a  stanza.  Higgaion  occurs  once  with 
Selah  (Ps.  ix.  16),  and  in  Ps.  xcii.  3  is  translated  '  a  solemn 
sound.'  It  has  been  understood  to  mean  *  joyfully 
resovmding  music,'  but  more  probably  refers  to  solemn, 
meditative  strains. 

Neginoth,  six  times  in  the  Psalter  (compare  Neginah 
in  Ps.  Ixi  and  Hab.  iii.  19),  indicates,  as  the  Revised  Version 
shows,  an  accompaniment  of  stringed  instruments,  while 
Nehiloth  in  Ps.  v  means  wind  instruments  or  'to  the 
accompaniment  of  flutes.'  Alamoth,  Ps.  xlvi,  which 
appears  to  be  connected  with  the  Hebrew  word  for 
*  maiden '  and  to  correspond  to  our  *  soprano,'  is  perhaps 
best  understood  of  an  instrument,  a  viola  or  tenor-violin  ; 
just  as  Sheminith  in  Pss.  vi  and  xii,  which  means  eighth 
or  lower  octave,  would  mean  an  instrument  corresponding 
to  our  violoncello  or  double-bass.  Qittith  also  in  Pss. 
viii,  Ixxxi,  Ixxxiv  was  understood  by  the  Targum  to  mean 
'belonging  to  Gath,'  and  to  refer  to  an  instrument  of 
a  particular  shape  or  type.  The  view  is  now  preferred 
that  it  is  the  name  of  a  tune,  perhaps  originally  that  of 
a  vintage-song,  to  which  the  Psalm  was  sung. 

Some  phrases  in  the  titles  are  probably  names  of  tunes 
or  popular  airs  which  came  to  be  known  by  name,  accord- 
ing to  the  opening  words  of  the  secular  songs  with  which 
they  were  associated.  Prof.  W.  R.  Smith  has  adduced 
parallels  to  this  practice  from  the  Arabic,  and  it  is 
familiar  enough  amongst  ourselves.  It  is  not  long  since 
a  well-known  hymn  used  to  be  sung  to  the  tune  of  *  Ye 


i6  BOOK   OF   PSALMS  (1-72) 

banks  and  braes.'  The  following  are  specimens  of  such 
titles  :  Aijeleth-hash-Shahar,  Ps.  xxii, '  The  hind  of  the 
dawn ' ;  Al-Taahheth,  Pss.  Ivii,  Iviii,  lix,  Ixxv,  *  Destroy 
not ' — possibly  the  beginning  of  a  vintage-song  (compare 
Isa.  Ixv.  8, '  Destroy  it  not,  for  a  blessing  is  in  it ') ;  Jonath- 
elem-re'hokim,  Ps.  Ivi,  'The  dove  of  the  distant  tere- 
binths'; Muth-labben,Ps.ix,is  a  difficult  phrase  to  render, 
either  with  the  accepted  pointing  or  with  any  other.  It 
might  conceivably  mean  '  Die  for  the  son  *  or  *  Death 
makes  white,'  but  it  is  enough  to  explain  it  as  the  name  of 
a  tune.  Mahalath  in  Ps.  liii  and  Mahalath  Ijeannoth 
in  Ps.  Ixxxviii  are  understood  by  the  Revised  Version  in 
the  same  sense. 

Maschil  is  found  prefixed  to  thirteen  Psalms,  chiefly  in 
Books  II  and  III.  It  has  usually  been  understood  to 
mean  a  'didactic '  Psalm,  as  it  seems  to  be  derived  from 
a  root  which  signifies  *to  be  wise'  or  *to  instruct.'  But  the 
Psalms  which  it  introduces  are  not  specially  didactic  or 
contemplative,  and  the  '  skilfulness '  which  the  word  in- 
dicates may  more  probably  be  referred  to  the  elaborate 
character  of  the  musical  accompaniment.  The  same 
may  be  true  of  Michtam  (Pss.  xvi  and  Ivi-lx ;  compare 
also  Isa.  xxxviii.  9),  which  has  been  connected  with  one 
root  which  means  '  gold,'  and  with  another  which  means 
to  '  inscribe.'  But  the  fact  that  the  '  Michtam '  Psalms 
have  few  features  in  common  points  to  an  interpretation 
which  applies  to  the  music  rather  than  to  the  subject- 
matter.  Shiggaion,  again,  derived  from  a  root  *to 
wander'— see  Ps.  vii  and  compare  Hab.  iii.  i — has  been 
understood  by  Ewald  and  Delitzsch  to  mean  a  dithyram- 
bic  song,  one  characterized  by  much  variety  of  feeling  or 
irregularity  of  construction.  But  a  musical  reference  is 
more  probable.  Ps.  xlv  has  a  fivefold  title.  Some  of  the 
phrases  have  already  been  explained.  A  Song  of  Iioves 
probably  means  a  song  concerning  that  which  is  lovely, 
or,  as  the  first  verse  expresses  it,  '  my  matter  is  goodly.' 
Shoshannim  means  '  lilies ' ;  compare  Shuehan  Eduth, 


INTRODUCTION  17 

*  Lily  of  the  testimony,'  in  Ps.  Ix.     Both  these  inscriptions 
probably  refer  to  tunes. 

Some  of  the  titles  refer  to  the  liturgical  use  of  the  Psalms 
in  question.  The  meaning  of  the  Dedication  of  the 
House  in  Ps.  xxx  is  discussed  in  its  place,  but  it  is  not 
improbably  a  later  addition  of  a  liturgical  kind.  So  with 
to  bring  to  remembrance  or  'to  make  memorial'  in 
Pss.  xxxviii  and  Ixx.  This  phrase  refers  to  the  Azkarah  or 
offering  of  incense,  and  the  Psalm  of  thanksgiving  (Ps.  c)  to 
be  sung  at  the  time  of  thank-offering.  To  teach  in  Ps.  Ix 
may  mean  that  the  Psalm  was  to  be.  carefully  learned 
and  recited,  as  is  said  of  Moses'  song  in  Deut.  xxxi.  19 
and  the  martial  song  of  2  Sam.  i.  17,  18. 

There  remain  the  Pss.  cxx-cxxxiv,  called  in  A.  V.  *  Songs 
of  Degrees,'  in  R.  V.  Songs  of  Ascents,  a  title  probably 
given  in  the  first  instance  to  a  small  collection  of  Psalms 
made  for  a  special  purpose,  since  the  plural  word  '  Ascents ' 
is  used  for  each  several  Psalm  and  represents  the  name 
originally  given  to  the  whole  group.  The  word  has  been 
variously  explained.  We  may  reject  without  much 
hesitation  the  theory  that  these  Psalms  were  sung  upon 
the  fifteen  steps  which  led  from  the  court  of  the  women  to 
the  court  of  Israel  in  the  second  temple  ;  as  well  as  that 
which  refers  the  *  ascent'  to  the  'step-like'  literary 
structure  of  each  Psalm,  in  which  each  verse  forms 
a  kind  of  advance  by  taking  up  a  word  or  phrase  from  its 
predecessor  and  repeating  it  with  emphasis  or  additions. 
The  two  most  probable  explanations  of  '  ascents  '  refer  to 
the  'going  up'  from  Babylon,  or  return  to  Palestine  from 
the  Exile,  see  Ezra  vii.  9 ;  and  the  '  going  up '  to  Jerusalem 
from  the  country  at  the  times  of  the  great  festivals  ;  in 
each  case  the  songs  in  question  being  sung  upon  the 
journey.  The  fact  that  the  same  word  is  used  of  the 
return  from  Babylon  is  in  favour  of  the  former  theory, 
whilst  the  plural  form  of  the  word  favours  the  latter. 
Amongst  moderns  the  latter  view  is  most  generally 
accepted. 

c 


i8  BOOK   OF   PSALMS  (1-72) 

An  early  Jewish  tradition  informs  us  that  in  the  worship 
of  the  second  temple  a  special  Psalm  was  sung  on  each 
day  of  the  week  at  the  time  of  the  offering  of  the  morning 
sacrifice.  The  only  indication  that  we  have  of  this  custom 
in  the  Hebrew  is  found  in  the  title  of  Ps.  xcii,  which  is 
said  to  be  'a  Song  for  the  Sabbath  Day.'  But  in  the 
LXX  Version  the  special  Psalm  of  the  first  day  of  the 
week  is  the  twenty-fourth,  of  the  second  day  the  forty- 
eighth  ;  whilst  the  ninety-fourth  was  sung  on  the  fourth 
day  and  the  ninety-third  on  the  sixth  day  of  the  week. 
The  Psalms  for  the  other  days  may  be  gathered  from  the 
Mishna — the  eighty-second  Psalm  being  assigned  to  the 
third  day  and  the  eighty-first  to  the  fifth  day  of  the  week. 

On  the  whole  subject  of  the  titles  it  may  be  said  that, 
whilst  not  contemporaneous  with  the  Psalms  themselves, 
they  are  of  ancient  origin  and  give  valuable  information  of 
more  kinds  than  one.  They  are  not  to  be  relied  upon  for 
the  ascertaining  of  date  or  authorship,  but  they  help 
considerably  in  the  attempt  to  understand  the  earlier 
grouping  of  the  Psalms,  and,  as  Prof.  Robertson  Smith 
said,  '  their  combined  evidence  is  strong  enough  to  prove 
that  in  both  Davidic  collections,  or  at  least  in  the  first, 
there  is  a  substantiar  element  that  really  goes  back  to 
David.' 

The  fact  that  some  of  the  technical  words  are  used  in 
other  Books— see  i  Chron.  xv.  20,  21  and  Hab.  iii.  i  and 
19 — while  titles  generally  are  wanting  in  Books  IV  and  V 
of  the  Psalter,  and  were  not  understood  by  the  Greek 
translators,  is  of  some  service  in  determining  their  date. 
But  the  obscurity  which  still  surrounds  the  meaning  of 
many  of  the  terms  employed  makes  it  impossible  to  rest 
any  great  weight  of  argument  upon  their  use, 

IV.  Date  and  Authorship. 
The  fixing  of  the  date  of  a  collection  obviously  takes 
us  but  a  little  way  in  determining  the  age,  still  less  the 
authorship,  of  each  individual  Psalm.     The  final  collection 


INTRODUCTION  19 

must  be  subsequent  to  the  date  of  the  latest  Psalm,  but 
the  earliest  may  be  centuries  older.  Since  the  evidence 
of  the  titles  has  proved  to  be  uncritical  and  untrustworthy, 
we  are  driven  to  other  sources  to  ascertain  approximately 
the  time  and  circumstances  of  the  composition  of  the 
Psalms  severally. 

The  evidence  available  is  partly  external,  partly  internal, 
but  neither  is  as  helpful  or  conclusive  as  we  could  wish. 
It  is  part  of  the  excellence  of  the  Psalter  as  a  book  of 
devotion  for  all  time,  that  the  writers  did  not  give  to  their 
prayers  and  praises  a  closely  local  and  historical  character, 
or  crowd  them  with  strictly  personal  experiences.  The 
references  to  events  are  vague  and  general :  it  is  almost 
amusing  to  observe  the  diversity  of  times  and  incidents 
to  which  different  commentators  find  allusion  in  the  same 
Psalm.  Then  the  habit  of  modifying  the  phraseology  of 
a  Psalm  to  suit  a  fresh  occasion,  or  of  adding  verses  for 
liturgical  purposes,  must  not  be  forgotten.  Traces  of 
such  modification  are  not  scanty  in  the  Psalter  as  we 
have  it,  and  if,  as  is  probable,  the  sacred  songs  had  been 
orally  handed  on  for  generations,  the  original  must  have 
been  considerably  altered  before  it  reached  its  final  form. 

Unfortunately  also,  the  evidence  of  language  does  not 
afford  much  help.  The  Hebrew  of  the  Old  Testament,  in 
the  hands  of  the  Massoretic  scribes  who  settled  the 
received  text  as  it  has  come  down  to  us,  introduced  a  large 
measure  of  uniformity  into  the  usage,  spelling  and  vocali- 
zation of  the  words.  A  progress  in  the  language  of  the 
Old  Testament  writings  is  discernible,  but  the  changes 
represent  only  what  may  be  called  linguistic  colouring, 
and  apart  from  the  approximation  in  later  times  of  the 
Hebrew  to  the  kindred  Western  Aramaic  dialect,  it  is 
difficult  to  apply  the  test  of  language  to  prove  an  earlier 
or  later  date. 

There  are,  however,  a  number  of  general  considerations 
adducible  which  at  least  enable  us  to  form  a  general  idea 
of  the  period  within  which  we  may  range  the  composition 

C    2 


20  BOOK  OF  PSALMS  (1-72) 

of  the  Psalms.  Other  specimens  of  Hebrew  poetry  have 
come  down  to  us.  The  song  of  Moses  in  Exod.  xv  is 
acknowledged  by  most  critics  to  be  in  substance  Mosaic, 
though  additions  appear  to  have  been  made  to  it  before 
it  was  inserted  in  the  Elohistic  narrative.  The  '  song  of 
Moses '  in  Deut.  xxxii  is  generally  assigned  to  the  eighth 
century  B.C.  The  song  of  Deborah  in  Judges  v  is 
described  even  by  the  more  advanced  critics  as  probably 
contemporaneous  with  the  events  it  describes.  The  song 
of  Hannah  in  i  Sam.  ii  probably  belongs  to  the  earlier 
period  of  the  Monarchy,  while  the  lament  over  Saul  and 
Jonathan  in  2  Sam.  i  is  allowed  to  be  genuinely  Davidic. 
Other  relics  of  Hebrew  lyrical  poetry  are  the  thanksgiving 
of  Isa.  xii,  the  dirge  of  Hezekiah  in  Isa.  xxxviii,  the 
prayer  of  Habakkuk  in  Hab.  iii  and  that  of  Jonah  in 
Jonah  ii.  These  poems  may  with  some  confidence  be 
said  to  illustrate  the  general  character  of  poetical  com- 
position in  the  period  from  Hezekiah  to  the  Exile,  though 
some  critics,  especially  in  the  two  latter  cases,  are  disposed 
to  date  them  after  the  Exile.  The  Book  of  Lamentations 
was  written  in  all  probability  soon  after  the  Exile,  not  by 
Jeremiah,  but  by  more  than  one  author.  It  forms,  how- 
ever, a  poetical  composition  of  a  very  elaborate  character. 
The  acrostics  it  contains  represent  an  advanced  period 
of  poetical  art,  and  it  is  not  unlikely  that  a  portion  of  the 
Book  was  composed  during  the  Babylonish  captivity. 

Additional  evidence  concerning  the  history  of  religious 
poetry  in  Israel  may  be  gathered  from  such  passages  as 
Ps.  cxxxvii,  where  the  captives  are  represented  as  being 
asked  to  sing  *  one  of  the  songs  of  Zion,'  and  Isa.  Ixiv.  11, 
in  which  we  read  that  the  '  holy  and  beautiful  house, 
where  our  fathers  praised  thee,  is  burned  with  fire.*  In 
Jer.  xxxiii.  11  we  find  a  most  interesting  quotation  from 
the  hymns  in  which  the  praises  of  God  were  thus  sung. 
In  describing  the  coming  restoration  of  the  city  and  the 
temple,  Jeremiah  says  that  again  shall  be  heard  the  voice 
of  bridegroom  and  of  bride  and  '  the  voice  of  them  that 


INTRODUCTION  21 

say,  Give  thanks  to  the  Lord  of  hosts,  for  the  Lord  is 
good,  for  his  mercy  endureth  for  ever :  and  of  them  that 
bring  sacrifices  of  thanksgiving  into  the  house  of  the  Lord.* 
The  language  here  quoted  as  that  of  the  sanctuary  in 
Jeremiah's  time  corresponds  exactly  to  the  thanksgivings 
of  what  are  generally  recognized  as  the  later  liturgical 
Psalms,  e.g.  Pss.  cvi,  cxxxvi,  &c.  More  general  references 
to  the  existence  and  use  of  sacred  songs  in  connexion 
with  the  religious  festivals  may  be  found  in  Isa.  xxx.  29, 
Amos  V.  23,  and  elsewhere. 

The  Books  of  Chronicles  furnish  evidence  of  their 
own  which  can  only  be  briefly  and  generally  described 
here.  These  Books,  dating  from  the  fourth  century  B.C., 
present  the  views  of  the  time  with  regard  to  the  history 
of  the  temple- worship.  It  may  be  granted  that  the  writer 
does  not  exhibit,  perhaps  did  not  aim  at,  historical  ac- 
curacy in  the  modern  sense  of  the  phrase,  the  numbers 
cited  being  in  some  instances  incredibly  large.  But  it  is 
clear  that  the  compiler  had  access  to  earlier  authorities, 
and  the  traditions  of  his  own  time  possess  a  weight  and 
significance  of  their  own,  even  if  it  be  understood  that 
there  was  a  disposition  then — as  there  has  always  been 
in  the  history  of  religion — to  antedate  the  origin  of  insti- 
tutions esteemed  sacred  and  authoritative.  The  evidence 
of  the  Chronicler,  while  it  must  not  be  pressed  in  detail, 
at  least  goes  to  show  that  about  330  B.C.  the  temple- 
worship  had  been  highly  elaborated,  and  its  arrangements 
were  so  sacred  and  time-honoured  that  there  was  a 
disposition  to  ascribe  them  to  David  himself. 

From  all  this  it  may  be  certainly  gathered  that  at  the 
time  of  the  Exile  religious  poetry  amongst  the  Jews  ex- 
hibited the  characteristics  of  an  advanced  and  fairly 
matured  art.  That  before  the  Exile  the  worship  of  God 
in  the  temple  was  maintained  with  praise  and  thanksgiving 
very  similar  to  that  which  is  contained  in  the  Psalter. 
That  for  centuries  before  this,  songs,  both  sacred  and 
secular,  had  been  composed,  specimens  of  which  have 


22  BOOK   OF  PSALMS  (1-72) 

come  do^\Tl  to  us.  But  in  proportion  as  we  travel  back 
in  the  literature,  evidence  on  this  matter  becomes  com- 
paratively scanty,  and  the  poetical  compositions  which 
certainly  belong  to  the  period  before  the  eighth  century 
B.C.  are  i^w,  whilst  even  these  may  have  been  modified 
in  process  of  transmission.  It  must  be  remembered  in 
addition,  however,  that  Eastern  oral  tradition,  especially 
in  the  matter  of  poetry,  is  tenacious  and  conservative,  and 
that  it  is  quite  credible  that  songs,  whether  directly 
religious  or  not,  were  composed  early  and  faithfully 
handed  on  for  some  generations  before  they  were  defini- 
tively embodied  in  extant  literature. 

That  a  considerable  number  of  Psalms  are  at  least 
pre-Exilic  seems  obvious  if  the  natural  and  obvious  inter- 
pretation of  the  words  is  admitted.  Those  which  directly 
refer  to  the  king  must  be  so,  unless  one  of  two  or  three 
far-fetched  explanations  be  admissible.  The  applica- 
tion of  the  term  'king'  to  Judas  Maccabaeus  or  Simon 
would  be  scouted  as  impossible,  were  such  a  supposition 
necessary  to  prove  the  early  date  of  a  Psalm.  Equally 
incredible  is  the  theory  that  after  the  Exile  the  nation 
was  styled  'king,'  just  as  Israel  was  sometimes  called 
the  '  son '  or  *  servant '  of  Jehovah.  The  cases  are  clearly 
not  parallel,  and  such  straining  of  language  should  not  be 
permitted  by  sound  criticism.  Pss.  ii,  xviii,  xx,  xxi,  xlv, 
Ixxii,  and  others  may  accordingly  stand  as  representative 
of  pre-Exilic  psalmody,  and  they  correspond  in  style  and 
character  with  other  poetical  compositions  of  the  period 
of  the  Monarchy.  It  is  not  so  easy,  however,  to  assign 
any  of  them  to  a  particular  reign,  or  even  to  a  centuiy. 
It  is  natural  to  associate  the  language  of  Ps.  xlvi,  and 
perhaps  of  xlviii  and  Ixxvi,  with  the  deliverance  of  Jeru- 
salem at  the  time  of  Sennacherib's  invasion,  and  some  of 
the  phraseolog>'  used  suits  that  notable  event  better  than 
any  other  the  record  of  which  has  come  down  to  us.  Pss. 
ii  and  xlv  again  may  be  much  more  easily  and  naturally 
interpreted  of  a  king  in  the  earlier  or  middle  period  of 


INTRODUCTION  23 

the  Monarchy  than  of  any  subsequent  time  :  and  while  it 
is  quite  possible  that  a  later  poet  has  dramatized  and 
idealized  the  situation,  such  a  view  ought  not  to  be  adopted 
if  there  be  no  signs  of  a  later  hand  in  its  literary  com- 
position. The  period  of  Jeremiah,  again,  is  one  to  which 
a  considerable  number  of  Psalms  may  with  great  pro- 
bability be  referred,  even  if  none  are  the  composition  of 
the  prophet  himself. 

The  chief  point  of  interest  with  many  readers,  however, 
is  concerned  with  the  name  of  David.  Is  it  to  be  under- 
stood, men  are  asking,  that  whereas  for  centuries  it  was 
believed  that  David  wrote  with  his  own  hand  a  consider- 
able portion  of  the  Psalter,  so  considerable  that  the  whole 
Book  was  called  by  his  name,  now  there  is  not  even  a 
single  Psalm  of  which  we  may  be  sure  that  it  has  come 
from  his  hand  ?  The  facts  are  even  so.  But  it  must  be 
added  that  the  difficulty  lies  in  establishing  the  cei'tamty 
of  Davidic  authorship.  Probabilities  will  be  differently 
estimated.  A  few  distinguished  scholars  refuse  to  allow 
a  pre-Exilic  date  to  any  of  the  Psalms,  and  Prof.  Driver 
holds  'with  tolerable  confidence  that  very  few  of  the 
Psalms  are  earlier  than  the  seventh  century  B.  c'  Many, 
however,  are  still  persuaded,  not  only  that  a  goodly  pro- 
portion of  the  Psalms  in  the  earlier  Books  are  pre-Exilic, 
but  that  many  have  come  from  the  pen  of  David  himself. 
This  view  is  held,  however,  as  an  opinion  based  upon  the 
probabilities  of  the  case,  not  as  by  any  means  demon- 
strable with  the  amount  of  evidence  at  our  disposal.  As 
the  subject  is  important,  it  may  be  examined  a  little  more 
closely. 

In  favour  of  the  Davidic  authorship  of  some  Psalms,  it 
may  be  said  that  the  ancient  and  persistent  tradition 
ought  to  count  for  something.  It  is  not  necessary  for 
this  purpose  to  contend  that  the  title  '  of  David '  always 
implies  the  tradition  that  David  wrote  the  Psalm  in 
question.  But  that  in  many  cases  it  must  have  meant 
this  to  the  writer  of  the  note  is  obvious,  for  the  occasion 


24  BOOK   OF   PSALMS  (1-72) 

is  often  specified.  And  we  have  seen  that  the  Chronicler 
habitually  refers  to  David  as  the  founder  of  psalmody. 
The  Davidic  authorship  of  the  elegy  in  2  Sam.  i  is  not 
denied,  but  it  is  said  that  David  wrote  no  sacred  poems. 
The  description  in  i  Sam.  xvi.  i8  of  the  son  of  Jesse  as 
'cunning  in  playing'  does  not,  it  is  true,  imply  skill  in 
poetical  composition,  nor  does  the  lament  for  Abner  in 
2  Sam.  iii.  33,  nor  the  description  of  David  before  the  ark 
in  2  Sam.  vi.  14,  take  us  far  in  that  direction.  Nor  can 
the  description  of  David  given  in  2  Sam.  xxiii.  I,  translated 
in  both  A.  V.  and  R.  V.  as  'the  sweet  Psalmist  of  Israel,' 
be  relied  upon  to  prove  that  the  writer  regarded  David  as 
a  Psalmist.  The  phrase  may  be  rendered  literally, 
*  pleasant  in  the  songs  of  Israel'  (see  R.  V.  marg.),  and 
may  mean  no  more  than  is  told  us  in  i  Sam.  vii.  18,  that 
David  as  a  hero  was  celebrated  in  popular  song.  The 
context,  however,  seems  to  imply  that  more  than  this  was 
in  the  mind  of  the  writer,  who  must  not  be  taken  to  be 
the  compiler  of  the  main  portion  of  the  narrative  of  the 
Book.  Amos  vi.  5,  moreover,  speaks  only  of  'those  who 
devise  for  themselves  instruments  of  music  like  David,' 
and  on  any  interpretation  this  passage  does  nothing  to 
prove  that  David  was  i.  writer  of  Psalms. 

None  the  less,  the  tradition  was  early  and  persistent, 
and  it  should  not  be  set  on  one  side  without  due  cause 
shown.  A  clear  proof  of  this  is  found  in  2  Sam.  xxii, 
where  a  Psalm  practically  identical  with  Ps.  xviii  is 
ascribed  to  David.  Granting  that  this  appendix  to  the 
second  Book  of  Samuel  cannot  claim  the  date  and 
authority  which  attaches  to  the  main  portion  of  the  Book, 
still  its  evidence  is  valuable,  and  it  seems  likely  that  the 
brief  introduction  to  the  Psalm  describing  the  occasion  is 
taken  from  the  historical  Book.  There  is  nothing  in  the 
Psalm  itself  directly  inconsistent  with  Davidic  authorship. 
A  portion  of  the  Psalm,  it  is  true,  appears  to  fit  a  later 
date  better,  including  verses  49  and  50  which  make 
mention  of  David  by  name.    The  details  v/ill  be  discussed 


INTRODUCTION  25 

in  the  notes  upon  the  Psahn  itself,  but  here  it  may  be  said 
that  those  who  assign  a  much  later  date  to  the  composi- 
tion are  constrained  to  admit  that  the  writer  has  thrown 
himself  with  great  skill  and  success  into  the  position  of 
David  at  the  time  described,  and  several  who  are  chary  of 
ascribing  any  Psalms  to  David  are  disposed  to  make  an 
exception  in  this  case. 

It  may  be  added  that  in  addition  to  the  existence  of 
ancient  tradition,  and  the  direct  testimony  of  2  Sam.  xxii, 
the  proved  existence  of  early  fragments  of  sacred  song 
and  the  admitted  Davidic  authorship  of  the  song  in 
2  Sam.  i  make  it  a  priori  probable  that  this  tradition  is 
well  based,  and  it  is  unlikely  that  all  the  sacred  poems  of 
so  distinguished  a  writer  have  disappeared.  The  objection 
that  David  was  a  warrior  and  therefore  could  not  have 
been  a  Psalmist,  or  that  his  lapse  into  sin  in  the  matter 
of  Bath-sheba  and  Uriah  makes  it  impossible  that  he 
could  have  written  in  a  spiritual  and  devotional  strain, 
will  not  bear  close  examination.  It  is  not  argument  first 
to  reject  all  alleged  Davidic  Psalms  and  then  to  say  that, 
since  David  is  represented  only  as  a  secular  hero,  he 
could  not  have  been  a  sacred  poet ;  but  some  such 
reasoning  in  a  circle  is  unfortunately  not  a  rare  pheno- 
menon. The  real  strength  of  the  case  against  Davidic 
Psalms  lies  not  in  what  Prof.  Cheyne  calls  'the  history 
of  art ' — for  it  is  easily  conceivable,  if  it  be  not  actually 
proved,  that  poetry  in  Israel  had  made  considerable 
advance  in  the  time  of  David — but  from  'the  histoiy  of 
religion,'  as  he  and  others  have  conceived  it.  Granted  that 
the  religious  history  of  Israel  was  what  many  modern 
critics  assert,  it  becomes  absolutely  necessary  to  bring 
down  the  date  of  the  Psalms  to  a  comparatively  late 
period.  But  that  is  the  very  point  at  issue.  It  cannot  be 
discussed  here,  but  those  who  study  carefully  what  may 
be  called  '  the  necessary  presuppositions,'  i.  e.  the  religious 
condition  of  Israel  implied  in  the  writings  of  the  prophets 
Hosea  and   Amos,  the  dates  of  whose  prophecies   are 


26  BOOK   OF   PSALMS  (1-72) 

known,  will  probably  come  to  the  conclusion  that  religious 
knowledge  was  further  advanced  in  the  ninth  and  tenth 
centuries  B.C.  than  many  modern  critics  are  willing  to 
admit. 

But  we  are  brought  to  this  point  at  last— that  while 
there  are  strong  probabilities  that  David  wrote  Psalms, 
that  these  have  not  all  perished  and  that  some  of  them 
are  found  in  the  Psalter,  it  is  impossible  to  mark  out  any 
— if  the  evidence  of  2  Sam.  xxii  be  rejected — of  which  we 
may  say  that  David  and  no  other  is  certainly  its  author. 
Even  if  Ps.  xviii  be  assuredly  his,  we  have  only  literary 
probability — a  notoriously  inconclusive  argument— to  go 
upon  to  carry  us  further.  Amongst  recent  critics  and 
commentators,  Duhm  may  be  said  to  represent  one 
extreme  in  his  contention  that  few  Psalms  are  older  than 
the  Maccabaean  period,  whilst  Cheyne  and  others  place 
the  earliest  considerably  after  the  Exile.  The  other  ex- 
treme, represented  by  Delitzsch  in  his  earlier  years,  would 
assign  forty  or  fifty  Psalms  to  David's  pen.  Dr.  Driver 
is  content  to  fall  back  upon  a  no7t  liquefy  though,  as  stated 
above,  he  does  not  incline  to  an  early  date  for  any  Psalms; 
while  Prof.  Kirkpatrick,  proceeding  with  the  combined 
caution  and  freedom  which  becomes  sound  scholarship, 
does  not  hesitate  to  take  up  a  much  more  conservative 
position  and  assigns  a  considerable  number  of  Psalms  to 
David  and  the  period  immediately  after  him.  The 
present  writer,  as  will  appear  from  the  notes  that  follow, 
is  inclined  to  think  the  truth  lies  somewhere  between  the 
conclusions  of  the  two  last-named  eminent  English 
scholars.  But  it  may  be  said  with  confidence  that  all 
determinations  of  date  must  with  our  present  evidence 
be  regarded  as  approximate  only,  while  the  limits  which 
a  sound  and  moderate  criticism  assigns  to  hypothesis 
enable  us  to  form  an  estimate  sufficiently  near  for  all 
practical  purposes  of  exegesis  and  edification. 

The  question  whether  any  Psalms  belonging  to  the 
Maccabaean  period  are  found  in  the  Psalter  has  been 


INTRODUCTION  27 

much  debated,  and  it  cannot  be  said  that  it  is  even  yet 
finally  determined  by  general  agreement.  According  to 
some  critics,  as  already  said,  we  owe  to  this  stirring  epoch 
in  Jewish  history  a  large  portion  of  the  Book  of  Psalms, 
and  there  can  be  little  question  that  the  events  of  the 
Maccabaean  rising  were  such  as  to  call  forth  Psalms  similar 
to  many  in  the  Psalter,  if  inspired  lyrists  were  forthcoming 
to  write  them.  What  we  know  of  the  period  makes  this 
not  improbable,  and  it  is  quite  possible  that  the  collection 
was  not  so  absolutely  closed,  say  by  150  B.C.,  that  no 
additional  Psalms  could  be  inserted  after  this  date.  But 
when  we  turn  to  the  actual  conditions,  as  far  as  we  can 
trace  them,  difficulties  arise  which  these  general  consid- 
erations do  not  dissipate.  The  Psalms  which  from  internal 
evidence  alone  we  should  be  disposed  to  class  as  Macca- 
baean are  xliv,  Ixxiv,  Ixxix  and  Ixxxiii,  and  from  very  early 
times  this  has  been  recognized  by  interpreters.  If  these 
had  been  found  towards  the  end  of  the  fifth  Book  without 
titles  there  would  be  little  difficulty.  But  they  are  found 
in  the  second  and  third  Books,  and  one  of  them  is  described 
both  in  the  original  Hebrew  and  in  the  Greek  translation 
as  'a  Psalm  of  Asaph.'  It  is  difficult  to  understand  how 
a  Psalm  written  so  late  as  B.C.  150  could  be  found  in  such 
a  place  under  such  circumstances.  Hence  the  opponents 
of  the  Maccabaean  date  urge  that  the  language  of  the 
Psalms  in  question  might  well  be  understood  of  earlier 
times  of  desolation.  This  may  be  true  of  parts  of  these 
Psalms,  but  there  are  isolated  expressions,  such  as  the 
reference  to  synagogues  in  Ps.  Ixxiv.  8,  which  would  seem 
to  necessitate  a  later  date.  Prof.  Cheyne,  who  is  in  this 
country  the  strongest  advocate  of  Maccabaean  Psalms, 
has  enumerated  four  criteria  by  means  of  which  these 
may  be  determined.  Three  of  these  tests  unfortunately 
are  too  vague  to  be  of  much  use :  '  a  uniquely  strong 
church  feeling,  an  intensity  of  monotheistic  faith,  and  an 
ardour  of  gratitude  for  some  unexampled  stepping  forth 
of  the  one  Lord  Jehovah  into  history.'     The  fourth  is  the 


28  BOOK   OF   PSALMS   (1-72) 

test  which  we  would  fain  apply  in  this  and  all  similar 
cases :  '  some  fairly  distinct  allusions  to  Maccabaean 
circumstances ;  I  mean  expressions  which  lose  half  their 
meaning  when  interpreted  of  other  times.'  It  is  such  dis- 
tinct allusions,  in  the  sense  of  decisive  historical  references, 
which  are  notably  lacking  throughout  the  Psalter.  An 
examination  of  the  best  and  most  recent  commentaries 
will  show  that  modern  scholars  are  not  convinced  that 
many  allusions  are  to  be  found  in  any  Psalm  so  decidedly 
Maccabaean  that  they  would  'lose  half  their  meaning' 
if  interpreted  of  other  periods,  and  Prof.  Cheyne  in  some 
of  his  applications  and  interpretations  stands  absolutely 
alone. 

Under  these  circumstances  there  is  nothing  to  be  done 
but  to  pronounce  the  question  still  open.  It  would,  in 
the  writer's  opinion,  be  a  mistake  to  close  the  door  against 
the  possibility— nay,  the  probability— of  Davidic  Psalms 
at  one  end  of  the  historic  line  and  of  Maccabaean  Psalms 
at  the  other.  But  he  also  holds  that  the  number  belonging 
to  either  class  is  not  very  large,  and  that  it  is  impossible 
to  be  certain  as  to  how  many  each  class  contains,  but 
that  the  approximate  results  which  have  been  attained 
in  both  cases  are  sufficient  for  all  practical  purposes  of 
interpretation. 

On  the  whole  subject  it  may  be  said  at  this  stage  that 
if  some  disappointment  be  felt  at  this  absence  from  the 
Psalms  of  definite  historical  marks,  and  the  consequent 
measure  of  uncertainty  regarding  authorship,  there  are 
compensating  advantages  on  the  other  side.  Most  readers 
would  like  to  be  sure  that  David  wrote  Pss.  xxiii  and  li ; 
Ps.  bcix  would  acquire  fresh  interest  if  it  were  known  to 
be  written  by  Jeremiah  in  his  dungeon  ;  and  both  Ps.  Ixxiv 
and  the  period  of  Judas  Maccabaeus  would  be  illuminated 
if  we  could  certainly  associate  them  together.  Much 
controversy  concerning  Ps.  ex  would  be  ended  could  it 
be  known  without  doubt  either  that  David  wrote  it,  or 
that  Nathan  wrote  it  concerning  David,  or  that  it  belongs 


INTRODUCTION  29 

to  a  much  later  period.  It  is  not  a  mere  question  of 
satisfying  a  natural  curiosity.  It  is  reasonable  to  say 
that  we  could  not  only  understand  the  Psalms  better,  but 
enjoy  them  and  profit  by  them  more,  if  we  knew  their 
authors  and  the  circumstances  of  their  composition.  This 
is  true  on  the  one  side,  just  as  it  is  true  that  special  interest 
is  given  to  the  reading  of  the  Scriptures  by  a  visit  to 
Jerusalem  or  the  Lake  of  Galilee,  and  that  sacred  im- 
pressions derived  from  reading  the  Book  of  Genesis  or 
the  fourth  chapter  of  John  are  greatly  deepened  by  the 
sight  of  Jacob's  Well  or  the  Cave  of  Machpelah.  Every 
touch  of  the  concrete  which  enables  us  to  give  reality  to 
the  abstract,  all  local  and  historical  colour  which  visualizes 
our  imaginations  for  us,  is  valuable.  But  for  the  purposes 
of  spiritual  instruction  localization  has  its  dangers.  The 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  said,  '  It  is  expedient  for  you  that  I  go 
away,'  though  his  disciples  found  it  hard  to  believe  this, 
and  were  slow  to  understand  the  gain  which  was  theirs 
through  the  coming  of  that  other  Comforter.  So  the 
spiritual  value  of  the  Psalms  is  unquestionably  increased 
by  the  absence  of  those  definite  historical  allusions  which 
would  enable  us  at  once  to  determine  their  date  and 
authorship,  while  at  the  same  time  the  references  are 
close  enough  for  us  to  illustrate  the  meaning  from  various 
events  of  Israelitish  history  to  which,  with  a  httle  modi- 
fication, they  would  not  inaptly  apply.  The  human 
touches  in  the  Psalms  are  frequent  enough  and  personal 
enough  to  bring  home  to  readers  in  all  generations  the  fact 
that  these  spiritual  songs  were  written  by  men  compassed 
with  the  infirmities,  exposed  to  the  dangers  and  troubled 
by  the  woes  and  doubts  and  fears  of  our  common  humanity, 
while  the  particularization  of  circumstances  is  not  minute 
enough  to  prevent  saints  of  all  countries  and  periods  from 
making  the  language  their  own.  The  study  of  Words- 
worth's poems  is  made  much  more  interesting  by  the 
notes  which  he  has  left  concerning  the  time  and  place  of 
their  composition,  but  their  higher  value  is  apt  to  be 


30  BOOK   OF   PSALMS  (1-72) 

diminished  by  a  diversion  of  the  reader's  attention.  And 
if  the  student  of  the  Psalms  to-day  cannot  attach  each 
several  composition  to  a  definite  time  and  place,  he  may 
the  more  readily  enter  into  the  true  spirit  of  words  which 
were  intended  not  for  one  age,  but  for  all  time. 

V.  Poetical  Structure. 
The  amount  of  Hebrew  poetical  literature  that  has 
come  down  to  us  is  very  considerable,  if  we  include  in 
it  only  the  Books  of  Psalms,  Proverbs,  Job,  Canticles, 
Lamentations,  and  scattered  poems  which  occur  in  the 
historical  and  prophetical  Books.  But  it  is  clear  that  the 
extant  poetry  forms  only  part  of  a  greater  whole.  Two  very 
early  collections  of  poems  are  mentioned,  which  have 
been  lost.  One  of  these  is  called  the  '  Book  of  the  Wars 
of  Jehovah'  in  Num.  xxi.  14,  and  an  extract  from  it 
referring  to  Moab  is  given.  It  was  evidently  a  collection 
of  ancient  war-songs,  and  the  way  in  which  it  is  quoted 
testifies  to  the  early  existence,  not  only  of  poems,  but  of 
collections  of  poems.  In  Joshua  x.  13  an  extract  is  given 
from  the  'Book  of  Jashar'  (the  Upright),  in  which  collec- 
tion David's  elegy  ov^er  Saul  and  Jonathan  was  included, 
2  Sam.  i.  18.  There  can  be  little  doubt  that  this  Book 
contained  verses  in  praise  of  heroes  and  worthies  of  Israel, 
whose  memory  for  various  reasons  it  was  thought  desirable 
to  preserve.  We  are  told  also  in  i  Kings  iv.  32  that 
Solomon  'spake  three  thousand  proverbs,  and  his  songs 
were  a  thousand  and  five,'  but  these  are  not  to  be  hastily 
identified  with  the  '  proverbs '  that  have  come  down  to 
us  under  his  name.  The  Book  of  Amos  gives  further 
testimony  on  this  subject.  In  vi.  5  we  read  of  drinking- 
songs  which  were  sung  by  the  rich  and  luxurious  of  the 
prophet's  time,  while  in  v.  23  there  is  mention  of  'the 
noise  of  thy  songs  and  the  melody  of  thy  viols'  in  con- 
nexion with  the  service  of  the  sanctuary,  service  which 
was  intended  to  be,  but  was  not,  acceptable  to  Jehovah. 
It  does  not  follow,  of  course*  that  such  '  songs '  consisted 


INTRODUCTION  31 

of  careful  devotional  compositions,  but  at  least  the  germs 
of  subsequent  'Psalms'  must  be  referred  to,  and  most  of 
these  have  probably  perished. 

The  specimens  which  have  come  down  to  us,  however, 
amply  suffice  to  show  the  variety  of  the  occasions  on 
which  songs  were  sung  and  the  purposes  for  which  poetry 
was  employed.  The  literature  of  'folk-songs'  in  all 
nations  is  fairly  large.  It  is  easy  to  understand  that  in 
primitive  times  that  which  was  intended  to  be  remembered 
would  be  embodied  in  (perhaps  rude)  poetical  form.  But 
for  weddings  and  funerals,  for  war  and  peace,  for  harvest 
and  vintage,  for  national  and  for  religious  purposes  alike, 
verse  rather  than  prose  was  used  in  early  times  amongst 
the  Hebrews  as  amongst  other  peoples.  One  very  early 
fragment  has  reached  us  in  'The  Song  of  the  Well,* 
which  is  recorded  in  Num.  xxi.  17.  It  celebrates  the  joy 
characteristic  of  Eastern  countries  when  a  spring  is 
discovered  and  a  well  is  dug.  Another  example  is  the 
sword-song  of  Lamech  in  Gen.  iv.  23.  Harvest-songs  are 
perhaps  referred  to  in  Isa.  ix.  3,  as  vintage-songs  certainly 
are  in  Ixv.  8.  The  fragment  recorded  in  Num.  xxi.  27- 
30  is  attributed  to  them  '  that  speak  in  proverbs,'  but  the 
phrase  which  would  convey  to  our  ears  the  idea  intended 
would  be  they  'that  sing  in  ballads,'  were  not  the  as- 
sociations of  the  word  somewhat  too  loose  and  trivial. 
Many  critics  consider  that  specimens  of  the  early  wedding- 
songs  have  come  down  to  us  in  Canticles,  or  even  that 
the  whole  Book  consists  of  a  collection  of  songs  similar 
to  the  wasf  of  modern  bridal  ceremonies  amongst  the 
Arabs.  It  is  much  more  probable  that  a  writer  familiar 
with  such  songs  has  adapted  this  style  of  composition  for 
another  and  a  higher  purpose.  The  meaning  of  Ps.  xlv 
will  be  dealt  with  in  its  place.  But  specimens  of  the  dirge 
or  elegy  have  been  preserved.  Jeremiah  (ix.  17)  refers  to 
the  songs  of  the  mourning  women,  who  were  accustomed 
to  'take  up  a  wailing'  for  the  dead,  sometimes  doubtless 
in  inarticulate  fashion,  but  sometimes  repeating  panegyrics 


32  BOOK   OF   PSALMS  (1-72) 

such  as  are  contained  in  the  lament  for  Abner  in  2  Sam. 
iii.  ^3,  and  David's  lament  for  Saul  so  often  referred  to. 
Again,  the  'riddles'  which  displayed  Samson's  wit  (see 
Judges  xiv.  14)  or  Solomon's  or  Agur's  wisdom  (see  Prov. 
i.  6  and  xxx.  15,  18)  must  be  taken  into  account  when 
the  dififerent  forms  of  Hebrew  poetical  literature  are 
enumerated. 

Much  more  important  are  the  national  songs  or  pctems, 
running  to  considerable  length,  of  which  examples  are  to 
be  found  in  the  Song  at  the  Passage  of  the  Red  Sea, 
Exod.  XV ;  the  Song  of  Deborah,  Judges  v;  the  Blessing 
of  Jacob,  Gen.  xlix ;  the  Song  of  Moses  and  Blessing  of 
Moses,  Deut.  xxxii  and  xxxiii.  In  all  probability  the  form 
in  which  some  of  these  poems  have  come  down  to  us 
represents  a  later  development  of  an  earlier  and  simpler 
*  song.'  It  does  not  come  within  the  scope  of  this  intro- 
duction to  deal  with  the  structure  of  Hebrew  poetry  out- 
side the  Psalms,  but  it  is  clear  that  our  immediate  subject 
demands  a  glance  at  the  wider  field.  For  the  Psalms  are 
the  fine,  consummate  flower  of  a  plant,  the  whole  growth 
of  which  should  be  fairly  understood  if  the  bloom  itself  is 
to  be  rightly  appreciated. 

Hebrew  poetry  is  for  the  most  part  either  lyric  or 
gnomic.  There  is  no  Hebrew  epic,  nor  did  dramatic 
poetry,  strictly  speaking,  exist  amongst  the  Jews,  though 
dramatic  elements  in  certain  poems  are  not  wanting,  e.g. 
in  Job  and  Canticles.  The  poetry  of  the  Psalms  is,  of 
course,  lyric  in  character,  though  in  some  few  instances  an 
approach  is  made  to  the  gnomic  and  didactic  strains  of 
(say)  the  opening  chapters  of  the  Book  of  Proverbs. 

In  form  Hebrew  poetry  is  of  the  simplest.  Hence  the 
difficulty  in  some  cases  of  drawing  a  strict  line  between 
poetry  and  prose.  The  Oriental  uses  in  ordinary  language 
vivid  and  varied  metaphors,  such  as  we  reserve  for  verse  ; 
the  Eastern  orator  falls  almost  unconsciously  into  rhythm 
and  melody  ;  and  the  Hebrew  prophet,  when  under  the  in- 
fluence of  the  Divine  spirit,  is  raised  even  above  this 


INTRODUCTION  33 

level  by  the  loftiness  of  his  subject-matter  and  the  afflatus 
which  fills  his  soul.  None  the  less,  a  line  may  be  drawn 
which  separates  his  most  glowing  and  imaginative  out- 
pourings from  poetry.  The  rapt  utterances  of  an  Isaiah  are 
poetic  in  the  highest  degree, '  of  imagination  all  compact/ 
but  they  are  not  poetry,  and  the  Revisers  in  their  intro- 
duction very  properly  distinguish  between  poetry  and 
'impassioned  prose.'  A  different  system  of  accents  in 
the  Hebrew  marks  the  distinction  as  it  was  understood 
by  the  Massoretic  scribes.  For  example,  Hebrew  poetry 
has  its  own  vocabulary  :  many  words  found  freely  in  the 
Psalms  are  never  employed  by  prose  writers.  A  poetic 
diction,  too,  is  discernible  in  the  retention  of  certain 
archaic  forms  of  words  and  terminations  in  the  declension 
of  nouns  and  conjugations  of  verbs,  together  with  a  few 
grammatical  peculiarities,  not  important  enough  to  con- 
stitute anything  like  a  special  dialect,  but  discernible  by 
the  scholar,  even  in  spite  of  the  work  of  the  Massorites, 
which  tended  to  remove  archaisms  and  make  spelling  and 
pointing  uniform. 

There  is  no  rhyme,  properly  speaking,  in  Hebrew  poetry, 
such  as  figures  so  largely  in  Arabic.  Yet  occasionally,  as 
in  Ps.  cv,  the  ringing  of  changes  upon  certain  suffixes  gives 
the  effect  of  an  irregular  rhyme.  Perhaps  this  should 
be  described  rather  as  assonance,  a  device  of  which  use 
is  freely  made  both  in  poetry  and  rhetorical  prose.  A 
characteristic  example  is  found  in  Isa.  v.  7  :  'He  looked 
for  judgement  (wzj-/?^rt/),  but  beholdoppression  {mishpach) ; 
for  righteousness  {tseddkah),  but  behold  a  cry  {tseakah).' 
This  may  be  considered  an  example  of  Paronomasia,  or 
play  upon  words,  such  as  for  the  most  part  cannot  be 
rendered  into  another  language,  but  all  Hebrew  students 
know  that  this  artifice  is  used  in  the  Old  Testament— as 
it  is  indeed  in  Shakespeare— in  the  loftiest  and  most  im- 
pressive passages,  without  any  thought  of  the  lighter 
associations  which  in  our  minds  belong  to  such  verbal 
ingenuities. 

D 


34  BOOK   OF   PSALMS  (1-72) 

But  simple  as  is  the  form  of  Hebrew  poetry,  it  is  real 
and  very  effective.  Its  basis  is  the  line,  and  from  this  we 
may  proceed  to  the  construction  of  the  verse,  thence  to 
the  metre,  thence  to  the  strophe  or  stanza :  each  being 
characterized  by  its  own  law  of  liberty,  which  is  none  the 
less  a  law  because  a  considerable  measure  of  freedom  is 
permitted  in  its  application.  For  example,  there  is  no 
rule  for  the  length  of  a  line,  yet  it  is  certain  that  a  limit  is 
observed,  marked  by  (i)  sense,  (2)  grammatical  con- 
struction, (3)  ease  of  pronunciation  in  a  single  breath.  It 
consists  usually  of  from  three  to  six  words,  representing 
at  least  double  as  many  in  English.  In  some  Hebrew 
MSS.  this  distinction  into  lines  is  preserved,  notably  in  the 
recently  discovered  fragments  of  the  Hebrew  original  of 
Ecclesiasticus.  In  Goethe,  Longfellow,  and  Whitman 
may  be  found  examples  of  poems  in  which  this  division 
into  lines  without  rhyme,  strict  metre,  or  uniform  length 
is  the  chief  characteristic  of  the  versification.  Whether 
any  more  exact  rule  for  the  number  of  feet  or  syllables  to 
be  found  in  each  line  is  at  all  discoverable  will  be 
discussed  directly.  But  at  the  outset  it  must  be  said  that 
since  it  has  been  and  still  is  a  moot  question  whether 
there  be  such  a  law  at  all,  it  is  quite  clear  that  the  scale 
by  which  lines  were  measured  must  form  a  very  uncertain 
element  in  the  construction  of  Hebrew  verse. 

It  has  been  said  that  the  line  is  the  basis  of  each  poem  ; 
it  might  perhaps  be  contended  that  the  unit  is  to  be  found, 
not  in  the  single  line,  but  in  the  distich  or  couplet, 
consisting  of  two  lines  marked  by  parallelism  of  members. 
Bishop  Lowth,  in  1753,  was  the  first  among  moderns  to 
point  out  the  importance  of  this  principle  as  the  essential 
feature  of  Hebrew  poetry.  He  defines  this  parallelism  as 
*that  relation  and  proportion  of  one  verse  to  another 
which  arises  from  the  correspondence  of  terms  and  from 
the  form  of  construction  ;  from  whence  results  a  rhythmus 
of  propositions  and  a  harmony  of  sentences ' ;  and  in 
another  place  he  describes  it  as  such  that  in  two  or  more 


INTRODUCTION  35 

members  words  correspond  to  words  and  matter  to 
matter  with  a  studied  and  measured  equality.  Where 
there  are  two  such  parallel  members  the  verse  exists  in 
its  simplest  form  :— 

A  wise  son  maketh  a  glad  father ; 

But  a  foolish  son  is  the  heaviness  of  his  mother. 

Reprove  not  a  scorner,  lest  he  hate  thee  : 
Rebuke  a  wise  man,  and  he  will  love  thee. 

It  is  obvious  that  so  long  as  this  parallelism  is  observed 
the  relation  between  the  two  members  may  vary  in- 
definitely. Lowth  classified  these  relations  by  defining 
the  parallelism  as  either  (i)  syno?iymous,  in  which  the 
sense  of  each  line  is  the  same,  emphasis  being  given  by 
the  double  expression ;  or  (2)  antithetic^  where  the  two 
members  of  the  pair  enforce  a  contrast,  an  artistic 
statement  of  one  idea  viewed  from  opposite  sides  ;  or  (3) 
constructive  or  synthetic^  which  consists  only  in  a  similar 
construction,  words  not  precisely  answering  to  words,  nor 
sentence  to  sentence  as  equivalent  or  opposite,  but  a 
correspondence  being  maintained  in  respect  of  the  whole, 
by  the  addition  of  accessory  ideas  and  modifications.  It 
has  been  felt,  however,  that  this  classification  is  not 
altogether  happy.  The  third  class  is  not  properly  dis- 
tinguished from  the  former  two,  so  that  the  same  example 
has  been  given  by  different  writers  under  different  heads. 
Then  each  of  the  former  two  classes  bears  almost  indefinite 
subdivision,  and  the  distinction  between  'synonymous'  and 
*  antithetic '  is  not  deep  and  fundamental  enough  to  form 
a  basis.  No  classification  which  proceeds  on  these  lines, 
even  if  Lowth's  list  were  enlarged,  would  give  an  adequate 
idea  of  the  almost  endless  diversity  of  relation  between 
the  members  in  form,  structure,  and  significance.  For 
example,  no  account  is  taken  of  the  couplet  which  forms 
an  expanded  metaphor  or  emblem : — 

As  cold  waters  to  a  thirsty  soul, 
So  is  good  news  from  a  far  country. 


36  BOOK  OF   PSALMS   (1-72) 

The  legs  of  the  lame  hang  loose, 

So  is  a  parable  in  the  mouth  of  fools. 

The  couplet  is  the  most  frequent  form  of  parallelism,  but 
a  triplet  or  tristich  is  occasionally  found.  An  example 
may  be  taken  from  the  New  Testament,  in  Christ's 
words  : — 

Ask,  and  it  shall  be  given  you ; 

Seek,  and  ye  shall  find ; 

Knock,  and  it  shall  be  opened  unto  you. 

"The  tetrastich,  consisting  of  four  lines,  may  exhibit  a 
correlation  of  two  couplets,  or  three  parallel  lines  may  be 
followed  by  an  independent  one,  or  a  steady  progression 
m.ay  be  discernible  throughout  the  four: — 

If  thine  enemy  be  hungry,  give  him  bread  to  eat ; 
~     And  if  he  be  thirsty,  give  him  water  to  drink  : 
For  thou  shalt  heap  coals  of  fire  on  his  head, 
And  Jehovah  shall  revi^ard  thee. 

The  connexion  between  the  two  pairs  of  lines  is  too 
close  to  resolve  the  tetrastich  into  independent  couplets. 
An  arrangement  of  five  lines,  of  six,  seven,  eight,  and 
even  up  to  ten  lines,  has  been  traced  by  some  writers, 
but  into  these  further  developments  of  the  principle  we 
need  not  enter.  In  the  Psalms  the  principles  by  which 
the  simpler  elements  are  built  up  into  a  poem  will  become 
clear  as  we  proceed. 

Is  metre  discernible  in  Hebrew  poetry?  This  has 
long  been  denied,  as  it  has  on  the  other  hand  been 
strenuously  asserted  by  individual  scholars,  whilst  of  late 
the  opinion  has  been  steadily  growing  that  the  latter  are 
right.  Lowth,  in  a  well-known  passage  of  his  preliminary 
dissertation  to  Isaiah,  said  that  the  harmony  of  the  verses 
proceeds  '  from  some  sort  of  rhythm,  probably  from  some 
sort  of  metre,  the  laws  of  which  are  now  altogether 
unknown  and  wholly  undiscoverable.'  Very  various 
principles   have  been  tried  to  account  for  the  metrical 


INTRODUCTION  37 

phenomena,  as  Kepler  tried  all  kinds  of  laws  to  account 
for  the  relation  between  the  periodic  times  of  the  planets 
and  their  distance  from  the  sun,  but  as  yet  without 
Kepler's  success.  Part  of  the  difficulty  may  arise  from 
modifications  of  the  original  which  Massoretic  pointing  has 
introduced,  or  from  corruptions  in  the  text ;  and  all  kinds 
of  liberties  are  taken  with  the  received  text  by  theorists 
anxious  to  establish  a  metrical  hypothesis.  Two  schools 
are  discernible  among  modern  writers  on  this  subject, 
according  to  whether  accent  alone  is  to  be  recognized,  or 
whether  all  syllables  are  to  be  counted  as  having  a  place 
in  the  metrical  scheme.  Perhaps  of  these  theories  the 
former  is  the  more  probable,  inasmuch  as  the  early  writing 
was  without  vowels  and  the  lines  are  separated  by  the 
sense,  and  therefore  an  attempt  to  carry  out  a  uniform 
principle  of  measurement  by  syllables  would  be  exceed- 
ingly difficult.  On  the  other  hand,  the  predominance  in 
every  line  of  one  tone-accent— with  from  time  to  time 
a  secondary  accent  not  interfering  with  the  main  stress- 
would  be  in  accordance  with  what  we  know  of  primitive 
versification  in  other  nations.  Further  discussion  of  the 
matter  here  would  be  out  of  place,  inasmuch  as  no  agree- 
ment among  scholars  has  yet  been  reached.  Some 
progress  has,  however,  been  made  of  late  years,  and  there 
is  no  reason  to  despair  of  the  attainment  of  some  measure 
of  success.  The  chief  danger  lies  in  an  attempt  to 
systematize  with  undue  and  pedantic  precision.  An 
appreciation  of  the  poetry  of  the  Psalms  can  hardly  be 
said  to  be  increased  by  a  study  of  some  of  the  metrical 
theories  of  recent  years,  which  are  little  better  than 
attempts  to  put  Pegasus  in  harness,  or  to  measure  by 
a  foot-rule  the  waves  of  the  sea. 

The  line,  with  its  predominating  tone  or  accent;  the 
verse,  consisting  as  a  rule  of  two  lines,  often  of  more ; 
metre,  occasionally  discernible,  but  always  irregular  and 
for  the  most  part  irreducible  to  rule— so  far  the  way  is 
clear.    The  next  question  is,  whether  there  be  in  Hebrew 


38  BOOK   OF   PSALMS  (1-72) 

poetry,  and  especially  in  the  Psalms,  anything  corre- 
sponding to  the  strophe  in  the  Greek  chorus,  or  the 
stanza  in  modern  verse.  In  favour  of  this  is  to  be  said 
first,  that  in  a  fairly  long  poem  such  a  break  would  be  as 
natural,  if  not  as  necessary,  as  the  end  of  a  paragraph  in 
a  prose  composition.  As  the  length  of  a  line  is  ap- 
proximately determined  by  the  number  of  words  that  can 
be  pronounced  in  a  breath,  or  that  express  a  simple 
proposition,  so  the  length  of  a  stanza  would  be  determined 
by  the  sufficient  working-out  of  a  given  thought  or  theme. 
This  is  confirmed  by  the  occurrence  in  certain  Psalms  of 
a  refrain,  marking  the  close  of  such  a  cluster  of  verses. 
Well-known  examples  are,  'Why  art  thou  cast  down, 
O  my  soul  ? '  in  Pss.  xlii  and  xliii ;  '  The  Lord  of  hosts  is 
with  us '  in  Ps.  xlvi  ;  '  Turn  us  again,  O  Lord  of  hosts ' 
in  Ps.  Ixxx ;  and  *  Oh  that  men  would  praise  the  Lord 
for  his  goodness '  in  Ps.  cvii.  It  may  be  added— though 
the  proof  here  is  not  one  that  can  be  far  relied  on— that 
the  word  '  Selah '  is  found  for  the  most  part  at  the  end  of 
what  would  correspond  to  a  paragraph  in  prose  and  may 
be  called  a  stanza  in  poetry.  If  no  more  be  meant  by 
the  stanza  or  strophe  than  the  natural  subdivision  of 
longer  Psalms  into  portions  of  irregular  length,  sometimes 
clearly  marked  by  a  refrain,  or  by  letters  of  the  alphabet, 
or  by  *  Selah,'  sometimes  only  generally  discernible  by  the 
sense,  but  always  giving  a  certain  pause  to  the  mind  in 
reading  and  rest  to  the  voice  in  reciting,  there  can  be 
little  question  that  such  ^n  arrangement  is  to  be  found  in 
the  Psalms,  and  should  be  as  far  as  possible  preserved. 
But  as  the  attempt  to  press  the  real  but  irregular  metre 
of  the  lines  into  definitely  measured  and  regularly  deter- 
mined syllables  has  thus  far  failed,  and  probably  would  only 
spoil  the  Psalms  if  it  succeeded,  so  the  attempt  to  map 
out  a  Psalm  into  portions  with  lines  of  the  same  length 
corresponding  to  each  other  at  intervals,  and  to  introduce 
the  technical  Greek  strophe  in  all  its  precision  into 
Hebrew  poetry,  has  failed  and  is,  as  we  think,  happily 


INTRODUCTION  39 

destined  to  fail,  as  often  as  it  is  renewed.  In  dealing  with 
individual  Psalms  in  these  volumes,  an  attempt  will  be 
made  to  guide  the  reader  in  each  case  to  such  division  of 
the  verses  into  stanzas  as  may  be  easily  and  naturally 
made  according  to  the  sense,  or  which  is  distinctly 
indicated  as  intended  by  the  Psalmist ;  it  being  always 
understood,  however,  that  the  use  of  the  word  *  stanza ' 
does  not  imply  any  regular  system  of  versification  such  as 
in  modem  poetry  it  would  properly  denote. 

VI.  Versions  and  Use  in  the  Church. 

It  remains  to  say  something  concerning  the  use  made 
of  the  Psalms  by  translation  into  other  languages,  and 
especially  their  employment  in  the  Christian  Church. 

The  received  text  of  the  Hebrew,  known  as  Massoretic — 
i.e.  traditionally  handed  down  and  shaped  by  the  pro- 
fessional scribes  who  prepared  it  in  its  present  form— has 
been  very  carefully  preserved  by  the  Jews  for  more  than 
a  thousand  years.  It  is  impossible,  however,  to  pursue 
research  into  the  earliest  history  of  the  text,  the  very 
uniformity  which  the  Jews  have  anxiously  preserved  for 
generations  standing  unfortunately  in  the  way.  The  chief 
help  to  be  obtained  is  from  the  early  versions,  which  in 
some  places  preserve  various  readings  which  materially 
assist  in  the  interpretation  of  obscure  passages.  In  places 
the  received  text  is  almost  certainly  corrupt,  but  great 
care  is  necessary  in  emendation,  since  nothing  is  easier 
than  to  get  rid  of  a  difficulty  by  a  modern  conjecture, 
which  has  no  more  support  than  the  opinion  of  scholars 
of  the  twentieth  century  that  the  Psalmist  may  have 
written  words  which  their  ingenuity  has  devised  for  him. 
The  Greek  translation  known  as  the  Septuagint  (LXX) 
was  made  in  the  course  of  the  third  and  second  centuries 
B.  C.  It  cannot  be  pronounced  a  good  translation ;  it  is 
often  obviously  faulty,  often  it  appears  to  evade  rather 
than  to  solve  a  difficulty,  and  in  some  places  the  rendering 


40  BOOK   OF   PSALMS  (1-72) 

is  quite  unaccountable.  But  this  last  phenomenon  may 
point  to  a  dififeronce  of  text,  and  in  a  number  of  instances 
it  is  quite  clear  that  the  LXX  points  to  another,  often  to 
an  easier  and  sometimes  presumably  to  a  better,  text  than 
the  received  Hebrew.  The  Targum— a  later  Aramaic 
paraphrase — at  least  shows  what  was  the  traditional 
Jewish  opinicfn  of  the.  meaning  of  a  Psalm  some  centuries 
after  it  was  written.  The  Syriac  Version,  which  often 
agrees  with  the  Hebrew  against  the  Greek,  not  seldom 
agrees  with  the  Greek  against  the  Hebrew,  thus  helping 
to  guide  us  to  the  true  text.  The  same  may  be  said  of 
Jerome's  version  of  the  Psalms  into  Latin,  which  was  made 
directly  from  the  Hebrew  of  his  time,  whilst  the  Vulgate 
was  a  rendering  from  the  Greek.  When  the  various  early 
versions  agree  in  a  reading  differing  from  the  received 
text,  and  that  in  itself  presents  some  grammatical  irregu- 
larity or  awkwardness  of  expression,  the  probabilities  are 
that"^  they  represent  an  earlier  and  better  text.  The 
Revisers  give  the  English  reader  some  guidance  in  this 
matter  by  occasionally  printing  in  their  margin  readings 
from  the  most  important  versions. 

Later  translations — who  can  count  them?  Who  can 
enumerate  even  the  languages  into  which  these  '  Praises ' 
of  the  Most  High  God  have  been  rendered  ?  After  the 
Gospels,  the  Book  of  Psalms  has  usually  been  one  of  the 
first  to  be  rendered  into  the  language  of  each  country  into 
which  Christianity  has  penetrated,  and  at  the  present  time 
the  Psalter  may  be  read  in  nearly  two  hundred  languages 
and  dialects.  The  standard  translations  now  in  use  in 
English  are  that  of  the  Prayer  Book  Version,  the  Authorized 
Version  (1611),  and  the  Revised  Version  (1884),  the  last  of 
which  is  used  in  this  volume.  The  so-called  'Prayer  Book 
Version '  was  retained  at  the  last  revision  of  the  Book  of 
Common  Prayer  in  1662,  because  it  was  more  familiar  to 
the  people  than  the  recently  made  translation  of  161 1,  and 
because  it  was  *  smoother  and  more  easy  to  sing.'  It 
was,  as  is  well  known,  made  by  Miles  Coverdale,  incor- 


INTRODUCTION  41 

porated  into  'Matthew's  Bible'  in  1537  and  the  Cireat 
Bible  (1540),  and  it  has  been  retained  in  the  Anglican 
Prayer  Book  ever  since.  It  has  endeared  itself  to  genera- 
tions, and  helped  to  enrich  the  English  language ;  and  its 
literary  and  devotional  value  is  not  to  be  estimated  by 
the  degree  of  accuracy  it  exhibits  in  the  rendering  of  the 
Hebrew. 

For— not  to  speak  of  Luther  in  Germany,  and  Marot 
and  Beza  in  France — it  would  require  a  small  volume  to 
give  an  account  of  the  metrical  versions  of  the  Psalms 
that  have  appeared  in  the  English  language  alone  during 
the  last  three  or  four  centuries.  Soon  after  1540  Thomas 
Sternhold,  '  Grome  of  his  Maiestie's  robes,'  was  overheard 
by  the  young  king  Edward  VI  *  singing  to  his  organ' 
such  words  as  had  never  been  heard  in  English  before : — 
O  God,  my  Strength  and  Fortitude, 

Of  force  I  must  love  Thee  ; 
Thou  art  my  Castle  and  Defence 
In  my  necessitie. 

Before  his  death,  in  1549,  thirty-seven  of  his  Psalms 
had  been  published  with  a  dedication  to  the  king; 
John  Hopkins,  a  Suffolk  clergyman,  helped  to  make  up 
a  hundred  Psalms  ;  and  by  1556  the  whole  hundred  and 
fifty  had  been  rendered  into  English  metre— a  version  of 
which  forty- seven  editions  were  printed  before  1600,  308 
in  the  seventeenth  century,  and  now  specimens  of  more 
than  600  editions  are  preserved  in  the  British  Museum 
Library !  Tate  and  Brady,  the  Scotch  Version,  the 
translations  of  separate  Psalms  by  Milton,  Watts,  Wesley, 
Addison,  and  Keble,  are  all  more  or  less  familiar  in  this 
countiy,  and  these  are  named  only  to  illustrate  the  hold 
which  the  Psalter  in  whole  or  in  part  has  obtained  in  one 
Christian  nation. 

For  the  Christian  Church  throughout  the  centuries  has 
testified  to  the  inestimable  value  of  the  Psalms  for  public 
worship  and  private  devotion.  Christ  and  his  disciples, 
as  devout  Jews,  sang  Psalms  at  that  solemn   Passover 


42  BOOK   OF   PSALMS  (1-72) 

which  was  to  be  known  through  history  as  'the  Last 
Supper.'  The  Apostles  James  the  Just  and  Paul  the  en- 
thusiastic alike  enjoin  their  early  Christian  followers  to 
*  sing  Psalms '  and  to  '  teach  and  admonish  one  another  in 
spiritual  songs,*  Tertullian  describes  the  singing  of 
Psalms  at  love-feasts,  Ambrose  organized  and  improved 
the  use  of  psalmody  in  church  worship,  Athanasius  en- 
larges on  its  value  and  importance,  Chrysostom  eloquently 
describes  how  Christians  turned  earthly  night  into  heavenly 
day  by  the  chanting  of  Psalms  :  '  When  others  are  asleep, 
David  alone  is  active  ! '  For  many  centuries  the  Psalter 
was  repeated  at  least  once  through  in  every  week  by 
ecclesiastical  rule,  and  several  canons  mention  a  refusal  to 
ordain  such  clerics  ias  could  not  repeat  the  Psalms  by 
heart.  In  later  days,  if  the  old  mechanical  repetition  is 
not  preserved,  the  Psalms  have  been  probably  not  less 
loved,  as  they  have  assuredly  been  more  carefully  studied, 
more  copiously  annotated,  and  more  accurately  understood. 
As  a  stimulus  to  devotion  for  the  languid,  as  a  vehicle  of 
praise  and  prayer  for  the  godly,  as  music  to  the  sad  heart 
and  wings  for  the  joyous  spirit,  the  Psalms  have  for 
thousands  of  years  proved  their  inestimable  worth  and 
their  inexhaustible  resources.  Appreciation  of  them 
has  grown  with  the  centuries,  and  every  generation  of 
devout  souls  finds  them  new.  It  is  hoped  that  the  pages 
which  follow  may  do  something  to  elucidate  their  mean- 
ing, especially  for  those  who  have  little  opportunity  for 
study. 

VII.   Literature. 

The  following  selection  includes  only  a  few  easily 
accessible  English  books,  such  as  are  likely  to  be  most 
useful  to  those  who  desire  to  study  the  Psalter  more 
closely. 

A.  F.  KiRKPATRiCK  :  The  Psalms.  (Cambridge  Bible  for 
Schools  and  Colleges.)  Edition  in  one  vol.  The  best  in  brief 
compass  for  all  readers. 


INTRODUCTION  43 

Perowne  :  The  Book  of  Psalms.  Larger  edition  in  two 
vols.,  for  Hebrew  students  ;  abridged  in  one  vol. 

Maclaren  :  Psalms.     (Expositor's  Bible.)     Three  vols. 

Driver  :  Inttoductton  to  Literature  of  Old  Testament^  pp.  359- 
391.    Sixth  edition.    The  best  account  of  modern  critical  views. 

Cheyne:  The  Origin  of  the  Psalter.  (Bampton  Lectures  for 
1889.)  Robertson  :  Poetry  and  Religion  oj  the  Psalms.  (Croall 
Lectures  for  1893.)  These  two  books  are  representative, 
respectively,  of  advanced  and  conservative  views  on  the  subject. 

Articles  in  Encyclopaedia  Britatmica  (W.  R.  Smith), 
Hastings'  Dictionary  of  the  Bible  (W.  T.  Davison),  Encyclo- 
paedia Biblica  (W.  R,  Smith  and  T.  K.  Cheyne). 

Excellent  editions  of  the  Psalter  are 

Driver  :  77!^  Parallel  Psalter,  containing  P.B.V.  and  one 
by  the  editor. 

Cambridge  Parallel  Psalter,  containing  A.V.,  R.V.,  and  P.B.V. 

^*^  Other  subjects  of  importance  which  belong  to 
*  Introduction,'  including  'The  Spirit  of  Hebrew  poetry,' 
'The  "I"  of  the  Psalmist,'  'The  Religious  and  Ethical 
Ideas  of  the  Psalms,'  '  The  Messianic  Hope,'  and  '  The 
Doctrine  of  a  Future  Life  in  the  Psalter,'  will  be  dealt 
with  in  the  Introductory  Chapter  to  vol.  ii.  of  this  work. 


THE   BOOK  OF   PSALMS 

I  —  LXXII 
REVISED  VERSION   WITH   ANNOTATIONS 


THE   BOOK   OF    PSALMS 

I  —  LXXII 

BOOK  I. 

Psalm  I.   The  Two  Ways. 

The  first  psalm  forms  an  appropriate  portal  to  the  sanctuary  of 
the  Psalter.  In  all  probability  it  was  set  in  its  present  place  by 
the  editor  of  the  first  collection  of  '  Davidic  '  Psalms  (see  Introd. 
p.  ^)  ;  less  probably  at  the  final  redaction  of  the  whole  book. 
It  stands  without  name  of  author,  without  title,  without  historical 
date-mark  of  any  kind,  and  its  very  timelessness  enhances  the 
effect  of  the  broad  and  strong  contrast  it  draws  between  good  and 
evil,  light  and  darkness,  life  and  death,  the  blessing  and  the  curse 
which  surel3''  attach  to  the  righteous  and  the  wicked. 

This  introductory  character  was  pointed  out  by  Basil  in  the 
fourth  century,  but  long  before  his  time  it  had  been  obvious  in  the 
arrangement  of  the  Psalter.  In  some  MSS.  the  Psalm  does  not 
receive  a  number,  but  is  treated  as  a  prologue,  and  in  others  it  is 
joined  with  the  second  Psalm.  In  the  Talmud  our  first  and  second 
Psalms  are  said  to  form  one  Parasha ;  a  mediaeval  commentator 
draws  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  first  Psalm  begins  and  ends 
with  a  beatitude  (i.  i  and  ii.  12) ;  while  in  Acts  xiii.  33,  where 
Ps.  ii.  7  is  quoted,  Codex  Bezae  and  other  authorities  read  '  in 
the  first  Psalm.'  Such  a  blending  can  only  have  arisen  from  close 
juxtaposition  and  the  absence  of  titles  ;  there  is  no  real  connexion 
between  the  Psalms,  which  are  widely  separated  in  subject  and 
probably  in  date. 

The  materials  for  fixing  a  date  are  few  and  doubtful.  The  only 
verbal  parallels  which  help  us  are  Joshua  i.  8,  where  Joshua  is 
bidden  to  'meditate  in  the  book  of  the  law  day  and  night,'  and 
Jer.  xvii.  5-8.  In  the  former  case  the  coincidence  may  have  been 
accidental,  though  it  seems  to  point  to  a  similar  date  for  the  two 
passages.  The  parallel  in  the  latter  case  is  too  close  to  have  been 
accidental,  one  of  the  two  writers  must  have  been  familiar  with 
the  words  of  the  other.  In  such  cases  it  is  a  delicate  matter  to 
assign  priority,  but  the  fact  that  Jeremiah's  habit  is  to  quote  freely 


48  THE    PSALMS  1.  i,  2 

1  Blessed  is  the  man  that  walketh  not  in  the  counsel  of 

the  wicked, 
Nor  standeth  in  the  way  of  sinners, 
Nor  sitteth  in  the  seat  of  the  scornful. 

2  But  his  delight  is  in  the  law  of  the  Lord  ; 
And  in  his  law  doth  he  meditate  day  and  night. 

from  earlier  literature,  that  the  figure  of  the  tree  *  planted  by  the 
waters '  is  more  fully  developed  in  the  prophecy,  and  that  the 
companion  picture  of  the  man  *  whose  heart  departeth  from 
the  Lord '  is  elaborated  in  detail,  together  with  other  less  obvious 
signs,  seems  to  point  to  an  earlier  date  for  the  Psalm.  The 
general  parallel  with  Prov.  x-xxiv  may  indicate  the  later  pre- Exilic 
period  as  the  most  probable  date,  say  the  seventh  century  b.  c. 

The  Psalm  has  a  character  of  its  own.  Its  gnomic  and  didactic 
strain  is  akin  to  some  paragraphs  in  Proverbs.  The  simplicity  of 
its  declarations  concerning  the  happiness  of  the  righteous  is  not 
alloyed  by  any  doubt  or  afterthought,  but  it  would  be  a  mistake 
to  confine  the  promises  of  the  Psalm  to  material  prosperity. 

1.  'Happy'  (R.  V.  marg.).  The  Psalmist  is  not  describing  an 
inward  state  of  joy  or  beatitude,  but  wishes  rather  to  emphasize 
the  visible  reward  which  God  gives  to  those  who  love  and  obey 
His  commandments. 

In  the  last  clause  read,  ^  sitteth  in  the  company  of  scorners.' 
The  three  parallel  clauses  of  the  verse  may  or  may  not  be  intended 
to  form  a  climax.  They  are  usually  so  understood — walking, 
standing,  sitting ;  counsel,  way,  company ;  wicked,  sinners, 
scorners — the  words  seem  to  imply  a  progressively  closer  associa- 
tion with  evil  of  a  more  pronounced  kind.  But  the  laws  of 
parallelism  do  not  require  this.  In  each  case  the  perfect  tense 
of  the  verb  used  indicates  a  habit,  but  in  English  this  is  better 
described  by  the  present  '  walketh '  than  by  the  perfect  '  hath 
walked.'  What  is  meant  is — the  righteous  man  is  one  who 
habitually  avoids  (i)  sharing  in  the  thoughts  and  ideas  of  evil 
men,  and  still  more  (2)  associating  himself  with  the  habits  of 
those  known  to  be  offenders.  Still  less  would  he  dream  of 
(3)  deliberately  assembling  with  men  who  confederated  to  sneer 
at  and  attack  religion. 

2.  These  negative  characteristics  are  explained  bj'  the  fact  that 
his  whole  heart  is  elsewhere.  Delight  in  God,  His  will,  and  His 
word,  is  a  safeguard  which  makes  duty  easy.  The  word  trans- 
lated meditate  suggests  in  the  Hebrew  the  low  murmuring  with 
which  a  man  cons  over  to  himself  lines  of  verse  which  charm  his 
imagination  and  his  ear,  or  repeats  in  soliloquy  a  name  that  he 
loves. 


THE   PSALMS  1.  5-6.  49 

And  he  shall  be  like  a  tree  planted  by  the  streams  of  3 

water, 
That  bringeth  forth  its  fruit  in  its  season, 
Whose  leaf  also  doth  not  wither ; 
And  whatsoever  he  doeth  shall  prosper. 
The  wicked  are  not  so ;  4 

But  are  like  the  chaff  which  the  wind  driveth  away. 
Therefore  the  wicked  shall  not  stand  in  the  judgement,     5 
Nor  sinners  in  the  congregation  of  the  righteous. 
For  the  Lord  knoweth  the  way  of  the  righteous :  6 

But  the  way  of  the  wicked  shall  perish. 

The  law  here  is  not  to  be  understood  of  a  definite  collection 
of  books,  but  the  revelation  of  the  Divine  will,  especially  in  the< 
form  of  righteous  precept. 

3.  Better,  '  so  shall  he  be  like ' ;  the  freshness  and  fertility  of 
spirit  here  described  are  a  direct  consequence  of  joy  in  the  will 
of  God.  The  streams  spoken  of  may  be  either  natural  or 
artificial.  Cf.  Eccles.  ii,  6,  •  I  made  me  pools  of  water,  to  water 
therefrom  the  forest  where  trees  were  reared.'  Greenness  of 
foliage  and  regularity  and  abundance  of  fruit  are  in  Eastern 
countries  specially  dependent  on  irrigation  ;  the  roots  must  have 
access  to  running  water.  Read  (marg.)  '  in  whatsoever  he  doeth 
he  shall  prosper,'  or  '  all  that  he  doeth  he  maketh  to  prosper.' 
Both  on  grammatical  grounds  and  for  purposes  of  interpretation 
the  person  should  be  the  subject  of  the  verb. 

4.  The  contrasting  figure  which  describes  the  wicked  also 
appeals  more  forcibly  to  an  inhabitant  of  Palestine,  who  is  familiar 
with  the  open  threshing-floor  on  the  hill-side,  where  winnowing 
is  greatly  helped  by  the  wind  which  blows  steadily  in  from  the 
sea  during  the  later  hours  of  the  day.  As  the  corn  is  thrown  up 
by  the  fan  against  the  breeze,  the  light  chaff  is  carried  away, 
whilst  the  heavy  grain  descends  to  earth.  The  figure  of  *  stubble 
before  the  wind'  is  employed  in  Job  xxi.  18,  and  often  in  the 
O.  T.     Compare  John  the  Baptist's  use  of  it  in  Matt.  iii.  12. 

5.  6.  Metaphor  is  now  dropped,  and  a  sharp  distinction  is  drawn 
between  those  whose  way,  or  course  in  life,  is  '  known '  by  God, 
i.  e.  regarded  with  loving  care  and  interest ;  and  those  whose 
conduct  will  not  bear  investigation  in  present  or  future  judgement, 
who  must  be  separated  from  the  gathering  of  the  righteous. 
Their  'way,'  or  life-work,  must  come  to  nothing,  or  come  only  to 
ruin,  because  it  is  essentially  godless.     In  Job  vi.  18  there  is 

E 


5Q  THE  PSALMS  2.  i 

2  Why  do  the  nations  rage, 
And  the  peoples  imagine  a  vain  thing  ? 


a  striking  description  of  a  caravan  in  the  desert  going  up  into  the 
waste  and  perishing,  because  the  streams  on  which  they  had 
depended  for  water  had  been  dried  up  by  the  heat.  Their  track 
loses  itself  in  sand,  their  bones  bleach  in  the  desert.  Such  ruin, 
says  the  Psalmist,  must  sooner  or  later  overtake  all  who  forsake 
God. 

Psalm  II.    The  Kingdom  of  the  Lord's  Anointed. 

The  contrast  between  the  first  and  second  Psalms  is  marked. 
The  former  is  as  abstract  and  general  in  its  contents  as  the  latter 
is  concrete  and  historical.  The  position  is  unmistakable.  A  king, 
who  as  '  God's  anointed  '  represents  the  name  and  cause  of  Jehovah 
in  the  earth,  is  threatened  by  rebel  princes  who  attempt  to  throw 
off  his  yoke.  In  sublime  language,  and  with  great  dramatic  power, 
they  are  rebuked  for  their  folly  and  warned  to  submit  in  time  to 
one  against  whom  it  is  futile  to  revolt,  inasmuch  as  the  covenant 
of  the  Most  High  has  secured  his  dominion  and  will  punish  all  his 
foes. 

But  whilst  the  position  is  clear,  the  actual  historical  occasion 
cannot  be  defined.  David,  Solomon,  Jehoshaphat,  Ahaz,  Hezekiah, 
and  Alexander  Jannaeus  have  in  turn  been  suggested  as  the  possible 
*  anointed  king'  of  the  text.  But  no  revolt  of  subject-nations 
'  against-  David  4s-t:e€Qrd£d,  and^Jhistoricallj^olomon's  is  the  most 
likely  name.  Some  have  regarde3^~Tiim  lis  the^  author  of  the 
PsSTm;  others,  with  greater  probability,  consider  that  a  poet  in 
or  after  Solomon's  time  dramatically  represented  the  situation. 
Other  commentators,  however,  being  unable  to  find  an  appropri- 
ate background  in  recorded  history,  view  the  Psalm  as  directly 
Messianic,  and  in  any  case  it  will  be  understood  that  the  typical 
meaning  of  the  words  prevails  over  the  historical,  i.  e.  that  though 
an  historical  occasion  may  have  suggested  the  Psalm,  its  language 
and  scope  transcend  the  actual.    A  Messianic  application  of  verses 

1  and  2  is  made  by  Peter  in  Acts  iv.  25-27,  who  probably  uses 
the  word  '  David  '  in  much  the  same  sense  as  our  '  Psalmist.'  The 
emphasis  laid  on  the  sonship  of  the  king  recalls  the  promises  of 

2  Sam.  vii,  but  the  loftiness  of  the  language  in  parts  suits  the 
position  of  the  ideal  King,  the  Messiah,  rather  than  any  actual 
occupant  of  the  throne.  Compare  the  use  made  of  verse  7  by 
Paul  at  Antioch,  Acts  xiii.  33,  and  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews 
i.  5  and  v.  5. 

f       The  Psalm  divides  naturally  into  four  strophes,  each  consisting 

I   of  three  verses  :  1-3,  the  projected  rebellion  ;  4-6,  Jehovah's  son  ; 

7-9,  the  authority  of  God's  vicegerent ;    10-12,  warning  to  the 


THE   PSALMS  2.  2-6  51 

The  kings  of  the  earth  set  themselves,  2 

And  the  rulers  take  counsel  together, 

Against  the  Lord,  and  against  his  anointed,  saying^ 

Let  us  break  their  bands  asunder,  3 

And  cast  away  their  cords  from  us. 

He  that  sitteth  in  the  heavens  shall  laugh :  4 

The  Lord  shall  have  them  in  derision. 

Then  shall  he  speak  unto  them  in  his  wrath,  5 

And  vex  them  in  his  sore  displeasure : 

Yet  I  have  set  my  king  6 

Upon  my  holy  hill  of  Zion. 

rebels  to   submit  speedily.     It  has  been  said  by  a  distinguished 
critic  to  exhibit  '  the  utmost  art  of  Hebrew  poetry '  (Cheyne). 

1.  Read,  'Why  do  the  nations  tumultuously  throng  together? ' 
The  English  word  '  tumult ' — compare  the  use  of  the  same  root 
in  Ps.  Ixiv.  2,  'The  tumultuous  assemblage  of  evil-doers' — best 
suggests  the  meaning. 

In  the  whole  description  the  terseness  of  style  gives  a  sense  of 
vividness,  whilst  a  change  in  the  Hebrew  tenses,  impossible  to 
render  in  English,  indicates  dramatic  development,  and  the  very 
sound  of  the  rushing  words  is  suggestive.  The  sudden  outburst  at  \ 
the  opening — Wliy  ?  impresses  upon  the  reader  the  utter  '  vanity  * 
of  the  attempted  revolt  far  better  than  any  laboured  description. 

2,  3.  Read,  *  The  kings  of  the  earth  take  their  stand  ' ;  the  verb 
in  the  latter  clause  has  been  rendered  by  Driver, '  sit  in  conclave '  \ 
together.  Secretly  plotting,  or  openly  rebelling,  they  oppose  the 
true  king.  Jehovah's  rule  and  that  of  His  representative  are  one  ; 
a  vain  thing  it  must  be  to  attempt  to  overthrow  it ;  <  as  hopeless  as 
if  the  stars  were  to  combine  to  abolish  gravitation '  (Maclaren). 

4.  From  earth  we  turn  to  heaven.  Read,  '  He  that  sitteth  in 
the  heavens  doth  laugh  ;  the  Lord  mocketh  at  them.'  A  bold 
picture  is  presented  by  the  Psalmist  of  the  King  surveying  all  in 
calm  and  indignant  scorn,  and  afterwards  we  hear  Him  speak. 
The  tenses  in  this  verse  should  be  rendered  as  presents.  , 

5.  Then— in  due  time,  in  His  own  time,  when  folly  is  ripe  and  \ 
the  bubble  ready  to  burst — '  He  will  speak  in  wrath,  and  in  his  hot 
displeasure  will  confound  them ' ;  will  smite  them,  that  is,  with 
bewildering  panic. 

6.  An  ellipsis  occurs  here  of  great  dramatic  force,  '  But  /  have 
set,'  with  a  double  emphasis  upon  the  'I.'  The  drift  of  course 
is,  How  can  you,  how  dare  you  rebel,  when  /  have  appointed 

E  2 


$2  THE   PSALMS  2.  ^-lo 

7  I  will  tell  of  the  decree  : 

The  Lord  said  unto  me,  Thou  art  my  son ; 
This  day  have  I  begotten  thee. 

8  Ask  of  me,  and  I  will  give  f/iee  the  nations  for  thine 

inheritance, 
And  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth  for  thy  possession. 

9  Thou  shalt  break  them  with  a  rod  of  iron ; 

Thou  shalt  dash  them  in  pieces  like  a  potter's  vessel. 
[o  Now  therefore  be  wise,  O  ye  kings : 
Be  instructed,  ye  judges  of  the  earth. 

a  monarch  whose  right  it  is  to  rule  ?  Zion  is  used  poetically  for 
Jerusalem,  and  *  holy  hill '  is  thought  by  many  to  indicate  a  com- 
paratively late  date  in  the  history  of  the  city. 

7.  A  sudden  change  of  speaker  occurs,  such  as  sounds  abrupt 
to  our  ears,  but  is  not  uncommon  in  the  writings  both  of  psalmists 
and  prophets.  After  Jehovah,  His  representative  explains  his 
position.  We  might  insert  an  explanatory  phrase,  'The  king 
speaks,'  before  the  words  *  I  will  relate  the  decree,'  &c.  God's 
promise  to  him  is  viewed  as  a  kind  of  edict,  a  Divine  rescript 
having  the  force  of  law. 

The  anointing  of  Solomon  is  described  as  a  solemn  function  with 
/spiritual  significance,  i  Kings  i.  34.  On  that  sacred  day  the 
promise  of  God  to  be  a  father  to  the  king,  and  the  duty  of  the  king 
to  be  a  true  son  of  God,  was  especially  dwelt  upon  •,  it  was  the 
birthday  of  the  son.  So  in  the  N.  T.  the  words  are  applied  to 
Jesus  Christ,  the  day  in  question  being  that  of  the  Resurrection, 
Rom.  i.  4  ;  or  in  his  superiority  to  angels,  Heb.  i.  5  ;  or  as  ap- 
pointed priest  by  God  Himself,  Heb.  v.  5.  The  recognition  of 
Christ's  sonship  in  the  Resurrection  seems  especially  to  have 
impressed  Paul  (Acts  xiii.  33),  and  the  parallel  with  the  O.  T. 
anointing  commends  itself. 

8.  The  phrases  of  this  verse  must  be  understood  hyperbolically 
if  applied  to  a  king  of  Israel  :  compare  the  promise  to  Abraham  in 
Gen.  xvii.  8.  Canaan  is  to  be  'an  everlasting  possession,'  yet  He 
gave  him  none  inheritance  in  it.  The  words  are  true  typically,  and 
will  receive  a  complete  fulfilment  before  the  end. 

9.  Read,  *  a  mace  of  iron,'  as  a  warlike  implement,  or 
perhaps  'an  iron  sceptre,'  as  a  symbol.  For  the  'shattering'  of  a 
potter's  vessel  see  Jer.  xix.  11  ;  it  '  cannot  be  made  whole  again.' 

10.  Another  change  of  speaker :  the  Psalmist  in  his  own  person 
addresses  rulers  generally.  Read,  *  be  admonished,  ye  judges  of 
the  earth.* 


THE    PSALMS  2.  ii->3.  i  53 

Serve  the  Lord  with  fear,  ir 

And  rejoice  with  trembling. 

Kiss  the  son,  lest  he  be  angry,  and  ye  perish  in  the  way,  12 

For  his  wrath  will  soon  be  kindled. 

Blessed  are  all  they  that  put  their  trust  in  him. 

A  Psalm  of  David,  when  he  fled  from  Absalom  his  son.  3 

Lord,  how  are  mine  adversaries  increased  !  i 

Many  are  they  that  rise  up  against  me. 

11.  Notice  again  the  close  identification  of  Jehovah  with  His 
vicegerent.  To  engage  in  Vvarfare  against  this  anointed  king  is  to 
resist  God  Himself. 

12.  The  margin  of  R.  V.  shows  the  difficulty  of  translation  here. 
It  is,  however,  safe  to  say  that  Kiss  the  son  represents  an  almost 
impossible  reading,  the  word  for  'son'  being  not  Hebrew  but 
Aramaic.  The  versions  point  in  another  direction,  and  in  all 
probability  give  us  correctly  the  general  meaning  of  the  verse, 
even  if  we  cannot  be  sure  as  to  the  correct  reading  in  the 
Hebrew. 

Render  *  Do  homage  purely,'  or  *  Receive  instruction,  lest  he  be   \ 
angry,*  i.  e.  Jehovah,  '  for  his  anger  quickly  burneth.     Blessed  are 
all  they  that  take  refuge  in  him.'     If  the  phrase  '  Kiss  the  son  '  be 
retained,  *  kiss '  must  of  course  be  understood  as  a  mark  of  homage, , 
see  1  Sam.  x.  r. 

The  anger,  however,  is  that  of  God  Himself ;  spoken  of  elsewhere  \ 
as  '  the  fire  that  burneth  the  forest,  and  as  the  flame  that  settelh 
the  mountainson  fire '  (Ps. Ixxxiii.  14, and  compare  Heb.  x.  29).  The 
adverb  means  may  '  easily '  be  kindled,  not  in  the  sense  of '  lightly,' 
as  a  passionate  man  blazes  out  on  slight  occasion  ;  but  because 
God  is  a  jealous  Gcd  and  will  not  long  brook  wilful  human  opposi- 
tion. On  the  other  hand  He  is  a  genial  friend,  giving  true 
happiness  to  those  who  take  refuge  under  His  strong  protecting 
care. 

Thus  does  a  second  beatitude  bring  to  a  gracious  close  a  Psalm 
which  opened  with  the  mutterings  of  threatened  war,  and  teaches 
to  high  and  lov/  upon  the  earth  the  only  true  secret  of  peace. 

Psalm  III.     The  Saint's  Morning  Hymn  :   Courage  in  God. 

The  first  Psalm  with  a  title.  It  may  be  noted  that  the  Vv^ord 
Mizmor,  translated  '  Psalm,'  occurs  only  in  the  titles,  as  if  it  related 
to  the  music  rather  than  the  subject-matter. 

This  Psalm  is  attributed  to  David  during  his  flight  from  Absalom. 


54  THE   PSALMS  3.  2 

Many  there  be  which  say  of  my  soul, 

There  is  no  help  for  him  in  God.  [Selah 


The  contents  of  the  Psalm  do  not  point  specially  to  such  an 
occasion,  neither  does  it  contain  anything  which  would  interfere 
with  this  account  of  authoi-ship,  except  that  the  phrase  '  his  holy 
hill '  as  a  description  of  Zion  might  be  thought  to  be  out  of  place 
so  early.  The  writer  is  in  great  straits,  his  cause  seems  almost 
desperate,  but  his  confidence  in  God  is  unshaken,  and  in  the 
morning  hour  he  gives  thanks  and  prays.  Many  writers  who  do 
not  freely  accept  Davidic  Psalms  are  inclined  to  make  an  exception 
in  the  case  of  this  and  the  next. 

The  full  narrative  of  David's  flight  after  Absalom's  rebellion, 
probably  referred  to  in  the  title,  should  be  read,  see  2  Sam.  xv- 
xviii.  The  historian  is  unusually  minute  and  graphic,  and  the  song 
and  the  history  may  be  made  to  illustrate  one  another.  Compare 
e.g.  the  danger  by  night,  2  Sam.  xvii.  i  ;  the  myriads  of  people, 
2  Sam.  XV.  13.  It  is  impossible,  though  some  have  made  the 
attenipt,  to  specify  precisely  the  morning  in  question,  e.  g.  the 
morning  after  the  night  mentioned  in  2  Sam.  xvii.  16.  But  the 
Psalm  apparently  belongs  to  the  earlier  part  of  the  rebellion, 
when  its  rapid  success  was  striking  fear  into  the  hearts  of  David's 
friends. 

A  subdivision  of  the  Psalm  may  naturally  be  made  in  accordance 
with  the  position  of  the  '  Selah  '  thrice  repeated.  There  will  then 
be  four  stanzas  :  verses  i  and  2  express  the  need  ;  verses  3  and  4 
help  in  God ;  verses  5  and  6  describe  David's  confidence ;  verses 
7  and  8  his  prayer  for  fuller  deliverance. 

1.  Render,  '  Jehovah,  how  many  are  my  foes  become  !  many  are 
rising  up  against  me.'  Compare  2  Sam.  xv.  12,  where  it  is  said, 
'  the  conspiracy  was  strong ;  for  the  people  increased  continually 
with  Absalom.' 

2.  Render,  'Many  are  saying  of  my  soul,  there  is  no  salvation 
for  him  in  God.'  The  same  word  '  help '  or  '  salvation  '  should  be 
employed  both  here  and  in  verse  8,  or  the  point  of  the  connexion 
is  lost.  *  Salvation  '  implies  safety  or  deliverance  in  the  fullest 
sense;  it  must  not  be  limited  to  bodily  security,  though  neither 
must  a  purely  or  predominantly  spiritual  meaning  be  given  to 
the  word. 

my  sonl  is  a  stronger  way  of  saying  'myself  ;  the  shade  of 
meaning  depends  upon  the  context.  If  we  translate  '  of  my  soul,' 
it  is  almost  equivalent  to  '  life  '  ;  if  with  R.  V.  marg.  '  to  my  soul,' 
the  idea  is  *  to  me,  with  a  desire  to  wound  my  heart.'  For  the 
taunting  language  of  this  verse  compare  Shimei's  curse  in  2  Sam, 
xvi.  8  and  David's  silent  submission,  verse  ro. 


THE   PSALMS  3.  3-7  55 

But  thou,  O  Lord,  art  a  shield  about  me ;  3 

My  glory,  and  the  lifter  up  of  mine  head. 

I  cry  unto  the  Lord  with  my  voice,  4 

And  he  ansvvereth  me  out  of  his  holy  hill.  [Selah 

I  laid  me  down  and  slept ;  5 

I  awaked ;  for  the  Lord  sustaineth  me. 

I  will  not  be  afraid  of  ten  thousands  of  the  people,  c> 

That  have  set  themselves  against  me  round  about. 

Arise,  O  Lord  ;  save  me,  O  my  God  :  7 

For  thou  hast  smitten  all  mine  enemies  upon  the  cheek 

bone; 
Thou  hast  broken  the  teeth  of  the  wicked. 

For  Selah,  as  indicating  a  musical  interlude,  see  Introduction, 
p.  14. 

3.  'And  j'et  t/iou,''  strongly  emphatic,  as  addressed  to  One  who 
knows  and  is  well  known. 

art  a  shield  about  me  :  as  with  Abraham,  Gen.  xv.  i,  and 
compare  Ps.  xviii,  2.  His  kingly  glory  gone,  covered  with  shame 
and  reproach  which  he  patiently  bears  and  knows  that  to  some 
extent  he  has  deserved,  David  still  possesses  an  inner  sense  of 
Divine  favour.  He  knows  that  the  God  in  whom  he  trusts  can 
lift  him  out  of  the  lowest  depths  of  trouble  and  disgrace,  see  iv.  3. 
If  God  be  his  glory,  his  head  will  be  lifted  up  ere  long. 

4.  The  tenses  used  here  are  imperfects,  and  the  meaning  is, '  As 
often  as  I  cr}',  he  answereth.'  The  *  holy  hill'  is  not  the  temple- 
hill  as  such,  but  Zion,  represented  as  the  dwelling-place  of  God, 
see  ii.  6. 

5.  The  I  is  emphatic  ;  even  under  these  circumstances,  '  I  lay 
down  and  slept,'  the  tenses  referring  to  historic  fact.  Or,  '  I  for 
my  part  was  calm  enough  to  lie  down  and  sleep.'  In  either  case 
a  proof  is  afforded  that  God  is  the  Psalmist's  shield,  protecting  him 
in  the  darkness  and  unconsciousness  of  the  night. 

6.  The  *  myriads '  of  this  verse  indicates  what  the  historian 
declares,  that  at  the  outset  of  the  rebellion  all  Israel  was  against 
David.  The  language  may  be  hyperbolical,  but  it  could  not 
appropriately  be  used,  sa3%  of  a  persecuted  saint  in  post-Exilic 
times. 

7.  The  call  upon  God  to  '  arise  '  is,  of  course,  anthropomorphic. 
It  was  handed  on  as  a  watchw^ord  from  wilderness  days,  when 
Israel  started  on  a  journey,  led  by  the  ark,  *  Rise  up,  O  Lord,  and 
let  thine  enemies  be  scattered,'  and  is  re-echoed  in  Ps.  Ixviii.  i. 


56  THE   PSALMS  3.  8—4.  i 

8  Salvation  belongeth  unto  the  Loud  : 
Thy  blessing  be  upon  thy  people.  [Selah 

4  For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  on  stringed  instruments. 

A  Psalm  of  David. 

I  Answer  me  when  I  call,  O  God  of  my  righteousness ; 
Thou  hast  set  me  at  large  ivhe7i  I  was  in  distress : 
Have  mercy  upon  me,  and  hear  my  prayer. 

Thou  hast  broken  the  teeth  may  be  a  prophetic  perfect  = 
'  I  am  confident  Thou  wilt  completely  break  the  power  of  the 
wicked.* 

8.  For — though  the  enemy  has  said,  There  is  no  salvation  for 
him  in  God— all  salvation,  all  victory  comes  from  Thee,  and  in  due 
time  Thou  wilt  grant  it  unto  Thy  servant.  So  David  already 
triumphs ;  but,  as  a  true  king,  prays  for  his  people  rather  than 
himself:  'These  sheep,  what  have  they  done  ? '  The  Psalm  closes 
with  a  benediction,  '  Upon  thy  people  be  thy  blessing ! ' 

Psalm  IV.     An  Evening  Hymn  :    Rest  in  God's  Favour. 

This  Psalm  is  bound  up  with  the  preceding,  a  companion  in 
every  sense.  It  is  written  by  the  same  author,  contains  similar 
characteristic  phrases,  and  breathes  the  same  spirit  Yet  the 
difference  is  no  less  marked,  as  in  two  landscape  pictures  by  the 
same  artist.  If  David  be  the  writer,  the  Psalm  will  be  ascribed  to 
the  same  historical  period  as  the  third,  but  some  time  afterwards. 
The  sense  of  safety  is  more  assured,  and  the  environment  more 
tranquil. 

In  structure  the  Psalm  may  be  subdivided,  like  the  last,  into  four 
stanzas  of  two  verses  each,  or  we  may  arrange  thus  :  i  ;  2-5  ;  6-8. 

This  is  the  first  occasion  on  which  we  meet  the  phrase,  Por 
the  Chief  Musician.  For  a  note  upon  it,  see  Introd.  p.  14.  It  may 
be  said  here  that  the  word  thus  translated  is  used  in  i  Chron. 
xxiii.  4  and  28-32  and  2  Chron.  ii.  i  for  the  overseer  whose 
business  it  was  to  direct  the  ser\'ice  of  the  temple  and  the  work- 
men. The  general  significance  of  the  root  {lit.  '  to  shine ')  is 
one  of  excellence  or  marked  ability  in  any  profession  ;  here  it 
seems  to  refer  to  the  conductor  of  the  temple-music  or  the  leader 
of  the  orchestra.  See  the  account  of  the  choir-leaders  given  in 
I  Chron.  xv.  17-21. 

1.  God  of  my  rigfhteousness  means,  God  who  alone  can  vindi- 
cate my  cause  and  establish  my  righteousness.  We  find  a  pre- 
paration here  for  the  more  spiritual  meaning  of  N.T. 

The  figure  of  '  enlargement '  for  deliverance  from  trouble  is  com- 
mon in  the  Psalms.     As  a  man  in  a  cave,  in  dense  woods,  or  in 


THE  PSALMS  4.  2-5  57 

O  ye  sons  of  men,  how  long  shall  my  glory  be  turned  into  1 
dishonour?      -wj^r^Vu  -  ;r.i!t -. 

How  long  will  ye  love   vanity,;  arid ^  seek  Rafter   false- 
hood? ^1  -o'f'oi:.^  -.\^<-^  :-.  ■  [Selah 

But  know  that  the  Lord  hath  set  apart  him  that  is  godly  3 
for  himself : 

The  Lord  will  hear  when  I  call  unto  him. 

Stand  in  awT,  and  sin  not :  4 

Commune  with  your  own  heart  upon  your  bed,  and  be 
still.  [Selah 

Offer  the  sacrifices  of  righteousness,  5 

a  narrow  ravine,  would  feel  'cabined,  cribbed,  confined,'  and 
long  for  scope  and  freedom,  so  the  Psalmist  is  thankful  to  be  *  set 
at  large.'  Render,  *  when  I  was  in  straits  :  be  gracious  unto  me,'  &c. 
It  is  well  to  preserve  the  words  '  grace '  and  '  gracious '  for  the 
root  used  here,  implying  as  they  do  the  free  favour  of  God  to  the 
undeserving,  rather  than  mercy  towards  the  guilty. 

2.  My  glory.  There  is  no  direct  allusion  here  to  God  as  in 
iii.  3.  It  is  the  personal  and  actual  dishonour  inflicted  which  is 
meant,  though  the  adversaries  are  doing  their  utmost  to  prevent 
David  from  realizing  his  true  glory  in  God.  .  But  there  is  an 
essential  hollowness  and  falsity  about  the  rebellion,  which  will 
ere  long  show  itself. 

3.  set  apart ...  for  himself,  always  a  mark  of  special  distinction 
in  the  case  of  an  Eastern  sovereign  ;  and  God  has  His  own  waj's 
of  indicating  His  '  own  possession.' 

For  the  word  godly,  chasid,  see  detached  note,  p.  360.  It  is  one 
of  those  words  which  requires  a  little  history  for  its  full  explana- 
tion. In  a  sentence  it  may  be  said  to  denote  one  who  is  the 
object  of  the  covenant-love  of  Jehovah,  and  who  in  his  measure  is 
faithful  to  the  bond  which  it  implies. 

4.  The  rendering  of  R.  V.  marg.,  'Be  ye  angry,'  is  from  the 
LXX.  It  is  used  by  Paul  in  Eph.  iv.  26,  with  another  kind 
of  application.  It  does  not  well  represent  the  meaning  of  the 
Hebrew  root  or  the  drift  of  the  verse  ;  we  should  render  Stand 
in  awe,  and  understand,  '  Tremble  with  fear,'  and  so  be  preserved 
from  offending.  The  second  half  of  the  verse  must  be  interpreted 
in  the  same  sense.  It  literally  means  *  Speak  in  your  heart ' :  or 
in  modern  phraseology,  '  Let  your  own  conscience  speak  in  your 
quiet  hours,  and  then  you  will  be  still,'  that  is,  cease  these  frantic 
and  futile  efforts. 

5.  Render.  '  Offer  right  sacrifices,'  such  as  God  will  be  well 


58  THE    PSALMS  4.  6—5.   i 

And  put  your  trust  in  the  Lord. 

6  Many  there  be  that  say,  Who  will  shew  us  a?iy  good  ? 
Lord,  lift  thou  up  the  light  of  thy  countenance  upon  us. 

7  Thou  hast  put  gladness  in  my  heart, 

More  than  they  have  when  their  corn  and  their  wine  are 
increased. 

8  In  peace  will  I  both  lay  me  down  and  sleep : 
For  thou.  Lord,  alone  makest  me  dwell  in  safety. 

5  For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  with  the   Nchiloth. 

A  Psalm  of  David. 

I  Give  ear  to  my  words,  O  Lord, 

Consider  my  meditation. 

pleased  with.  The  same  phrase  is  used  in  Deut.  xxxiii.  19,  which 
forms  a  closer  parallel  than  the  reference  to  li.  19,  where  peni- 
tence is  emphasized.  The  advice  is  to  set  themselves  in  right 
line  and  order,  else  all  their  sacrifices,  like  those  of  Saul  in  the 
caseof  Amalek,  will  only  increase  their  condemnation. 

6.  It  is  easy  to  complain  and  to  take  gloomy  views  of  the  future. 
Absalom  had  tried  to  persuade  the  people  that,  if  he  were  king, 
justice  would  indeed  be  done,  2  Sam.  xv.  4.  David  points  to  the 
true  source  of  light  and  happiness,  using  a  phrase  from  the 
priestly  benediction,  Num.  vi.  26.  Whilst  men  are  pessimistically 
crying,  '  Will  the  good  time  never  come  ? '  the  righteous  are  content 
to  pray,  '  Lord,  lift  the  light  of  Thy  countenance  upon  us.' 

7.  True  joy  may  be  found  in  time  of  straits,  far  more  blessed  than 
the  reckless  roystering  of  the  ungodly,  or  the  innocent  enjoyment 
of  God's  good  gifts  of  corn  and  wine. 

8.  The  Psalmist  would  say.  As  formerly  I  was  calm  enough  to 
sleep  in  the  midst  of  danger,  so  now  I  will  lay  me  down  in  peace 
and  *  sleep  at  once,'  the  word  indicating  that  the  lying  down  and 
the  sleeping  come  <  together,'  no  interval  of  watchfulness  is  caused 
by  anxiety. 

There  is  some  doubt  as  to  the  meaning  of  alone,  as  the 
rendering  of  R.  V.  marg.  '  in  solitude '  shows.  The  question  is 
whether  the  word  refers  to  God,  'Thou  alone  workest  great 
marvels ' ;  or  to  David,  '  Thou  makest  me  to  dwell  alone,  apart 
from  my  foes  and  in  perfect  safety.'  Either  gives  good  sense, 
the  latter  probably  is  the  meaning ;  compare  Deut.  xxxiii.  28. 

Psalm  V.    A  Morning  Prayer  before  going  to  the  Sanctuary. 

The  title  assigns  this  Psalm  to  David,   and  some  commentators 

still  accept  his  authorship.     The  chief  objection  is  the  use  of  the 


THE   PSALMS  5.  2,  3  59 

Hearken  unto  the  voice  of  my  cry,  my  King,  and  my  God  :  2 
For  unto  thee  do  I  pray. 

0  Lord,  in  the  morning  shalt  thou  hear  my  voice;  3 
In  the  morning  will  I  order  my  pi-ayer  unto  thee,  and  will 

keep  watch.    : 

word  translated  '  temple '  in  verse  7.  The  phrase  *  house  of  God  ' 
presents  no  difficulty,  but  the  word  heykal,  which  means  properly 
'  palace  '  and  is  probably  to  be  so  understood  in  Amos  viii.  3,  seems 
quite  inapplicable  to  the  tent  in  which  David  had  lodged  the  ark. 
The  word  is  used,  however,  of  Heaven,  as  the  dwelling-place  of 
God  in  Ps.  xxix.  9,  and  it  is  applied  to  the  sanctuary  at  Shiloh, 

1  Sam.  i.  9,  as  a  kind  of  earthly  counterpart  to  the  heavenly  abode. 
It  might  therefore  be  employed  poetically  as  a  synonym  for  the 
house  of  God,  see  xxvii.  4,  6.  But  it  is  to  be  said  further,  that 
the  tone  of  the  righteous  man's  complaint  against  evil-doers  in 
verse  10  is  hardly  applicable  to  David,  even  in  the  time  of  Saul's 
persecution  or  Absalom's  rebellion,  while  it  is  quite  inconsistent 
with  the  position  of  a  king  on  the  throne.  Rather  does  it  apply  to 
a  later  period  when  the  pious  and  the  ungodly  Jews  were  sharply 
distinguished,  as  in  the  time  of  Jeremiah  or  the  later  Monarchy. 

There  appear  to  be  three  sections  in  the  Psalm  :  Introduction, 
verses  1-3  ;  God  the  ground  of  confidence,  4-7  ;  Prayers  for  self, 
for  enemies,  for  friends,  8-12. 

The  title  indicates  that  the  Psalm  is  to  be  set  to  music  and  sung 
to  an  accompaniment  of  wind  instruments. 

1.  The  word  translated  meditation  implies  an  unspoken  or, 
more  probably,  a  lowly  murmured  petition.  Thus  did  Hannah 
speak  *in  her  heart';  her  lips  moved,  but  her  voice  was  not 
heard,  and  Eli  thought  her  intoxicated,  i  Sam.  i.  13. 

2.  The  word  cry  presents  a  strong  contrast.  We  are  accus- 
tomed to  read  the  word  in  the  Psalms  as  equivalent  to  '  call,*  but 
it  should  be  understood  of  a  literal  cry,  strong  and  piercing. 
Both  words  point  to  strong  emotion,  very  differently  expressed. 

3.  The  phrase  in  the  morning-  stands  in  an  emphatic  position, 
and  is  twice  repeated.  It  is  to  be  understood  literally  ;  the 
Psalm  is  a  preparation  for  a  new  day,  and  is  as  the  offering  of  a 
morning  sacrifice. 

This  is  more  fully  brought  out  by  the  phraseology  of  the  verse. 
The  word  order,  equivalent  to  *  arrange,'  is  used  of  (i)  a  sacrifice, 
Gen.  xxii.  9,  *  laid  the  wood  in  order,'  and  (2)  a  cause  or  argu- 
ment. Job  xxxii.  14,  <  order  words  against  me.' 

To  keep  watch  has  been  understood  of  the  priest,  who  after 
arranging  the  sacrifice  would  look  up  to  God  for  a  favourable 
answer.     Also  as  of  a  sentinel  in  2  Sam.  xviii.  24  and  Hab.  ii.  i. 


6i?  THE    PSALMS  5.  4-8 

4  For  thou  art  not  a  God  that  hath  pleasure  in  wickedness  : 
Evil  shall  not  sojourn  with  thee. 

5  The  arrogant  shall  not  stand  in  thy  sight : 
Thou  hatest  all  workers  of  iniquity. 

6  Thou  shalt  destroy  them  that  speak  lies : 

The  Lord  abhorreth  the  bloodthirsty  and  deceitful  man. 

7  But  as  for  me,  in  the  multitude  of  thy  lovingkindness  will 

I  come  into  thy  house : 
In  thy  fear  will  I  worship  toward  thy  holy  temple. 

8  Lead  me,  O  Lord,  in  thy  righteousness  because  of  mine 

enemies ; 

*I  would  set  forth  my  cause  or  plea  and  watch  for  an  answer.' 
The  associations  of  the  phrase  are  not  decisive,  but  (i)  is  perhaps 
the  more  probable  interpretation. 

4.  In  the  second  half  of  the  verse  render  as  R.  V.  marg.,  '  The 
evil  man  cannot  be  guest  of  thine.'  The  idea  is  more  fully  brought 
out  in  Ps.  XV  and  xxiv,  see  notes. 

5,  6.  Various  kinds  of  evil  are  enumerated.  For  the  first  word, 
'Fools'  (R.V.  marg.)  is  not  strong  enough,  while  arrogrant  is 
somewhat  too  strong.  It  means  '  boasters,'  loud,  noisy,  and 
obstreperous,  rather  than  haughty,  reserved,  and  arrogant ;  the 
element  of  folly  must  be  included.  Stand  in  thy  sight  is  not 
the  same  thing  as  'standing  in  the  congregation,'  i.  5  ;  it  means 
'shall  not  lift  up  their  heads  in  thy  court,'  or  even  venture  into 
the  presence  of  God.  The  light  of  that  august  presence-chamber 
is  too  keen  and  strong  for  such  to  encou'nter.  A  general  word 
for  evil-doers  follows,  with  two  kinds  of  wrong  specified,  violence 
and  fraud.  Equally  detestable  ('  abhor '  in  verse  6  is  a  strong  word 
for  loathing)  are  the  bold  self-assertion  of  evil  which  strives  to 
crush  the  good  and  the  subtle  craft  which  insidiously  winds  its 
way  into  power. 

*7.  Strongly  contrasted  is  the  attitude  of  the  Psalmist.  He 
draws  near  to  God,  and  the  qualifications  which  make  this  possible 
are  (i)  the  grace  and  lovingkindness  of  God  which  permit  the 
approach  ;  (2)  his  own  reverent  love  of  righteousness  which  pre- 
pares him  rightly  to  approach  the  place  where  God  dwells. 

8.  The  theme  of  his  prayer  is  that  God  will  enable  him  to  order 
his  life  aright  in  the  presence  of  so  many  who  neither  fear  God 
nor  regard  man.  Read  with  R.V.  marg.,  'them  that  lie  in  wait 
for  me  '  ;  the  word  is  probably  to  be  understood  as  of  a  beast  of 
prey,  a  stronger  power  watching  for  a  good  opportunity  of  strik- 
ing a  blow. 


THE   PSALMS  5.  9.12  61 

Make  thy  way  plain  before  my  face. 

For  there  is  no  faithfulness  in  their  mouth  j  9 

Their  inward  part  is  very  wickedness : 

Their  throat  is  an  open  sepulchre; 

They  flatter  with  their  tongue. 

Hold  them  guilty,  O  God ;  10 

Let  them  fall  by  their  own  counsels : 

Thrust  them  out  in  the  multitude  of  their  transgressions ; 

For  they  have  rebelled  against  thee. 

But  let  all  those  that  put  their  trust  in  thee  rejoice,  1 1 

Let  them  ever  shout  for  joy,  because  thou  defendest  them  : 

Let  them  also  that  love  thy  name  be  joyful  in  thee. 

For  thou  wilt  bless  the  righteous ;  1 2 

O  Lord,  thou  wilt  compass  him  with  favour  as  with  a  shield. 

Make  thy  way  (i.  e.  the  way  of  righteousness)  plain :  not  clear 

or  evident,  but  level,  straight,  easy  to  travel. 

9.  There  is  no  '  steadfastness,'  consistency,  in  their  utterances, 
nothing  that  one  can  trust  to.  The  reason  is  that  there  is  hollow- 
ness  within  ;  lit.  *  destructions,'  the  plural  indicating  complete- 
ness ;  marg.  *  a  yawning  gulf.'  Throat  and  tongue  stand  for 
the  way  in  which  speech  is  used,  flattering  in  tone,  destructive  if 
listened  to.  Thus  did  Christ  denounce  the  Pharisees  as  whited 
sepulchres. 

10.  If  God  holds  or  declares  them  guilty,  punishment  is  sure  to 
follow.  The  persons  in  question  occupy  a  position  of  authorit}', 
from  which  the  Psalmist  asks  that  they  may  be  *  thrust  down.'  How- 
ever powerful  they  may  be  on  earth,  they  are  rebels  against  God. 

11.  12.  Render,  *  So  shall  all  those  that  take  refuge  in  thee 
rejoice,  They  shall,'  &c.  The  meaning  is,  this  is  the  only  way 
for  the  land  to  prosper ;  when  the  evil  are  overthrown,  the  true- 
hearted  will  be  happy  and  successful.  The  Psalmist  and  the 
righteous  portion  of  the  community  identify  themselves  with  God's 
kingdom  in  the  world,  and  desire  that  His  true  citizens  shall  come 
to  their  own. 

love  thy  name  means  delight  in  thy  revealed  character  and 
desire,  in  the  sense  of  the  Lord's  Prayer,  that  everywhere  it 
should  be  known  and  hallowed. 

In  the  last  verse  render,  'with  favour,  as  with  a  buckler,  thou 
dost  encompass  him.'  Five  words  are  used  in  the  O.  T.  for  '  shield,' 
two  chiefly.     The  smaller,  uiagCu,  might  be  carried  on  the  arm  j 


62  THE  PSALMS  6.  i 

6        For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  on  stringed  instruments,  set  to  the 
Sheminith.     A  Psalm  of  David. 

I  O  Lord,  rebuke  me  not  in  thine  anger, 
Neither  chasten  me  in  thy  hot  displeasure. 


the  larger,  t^imtah,  which  was  large  enough  to  be  carried  in 
front  of  a  warrior  by  an  attendant,  is  referred  to  here.  See 
1  Sam.  xvii.  7  (41  ?). 

Psalm  VI.    A  Sufferer's  *  Miserere.' 

A  Psalm  written  in  sore  trouble.  That  the  sorrow  is  personal 
rather  than  national — as  a  current  fashion  would  make  it — seems 
clear ;  also  that  severe  bodily  sickness  is  its  main  element.  The 
enemies  whom  the  righteous  man  so  often  encounters  in  an  evil 
world  have  contributed  to  the  Psalmist's  distress,  but  they 
stand  in  the  background  rather  than  in  the  foreground  of  the 
picture.  He  is  still  in  danger  of  death,  and  in  the  former  part  of 
the  Psalm  calls  for  deliverance  ;  but  before  it  closes  he  sees  light 
dawn,  and  anticipates  the  time  when  the  malice  of  those  who  add 
to  his  pain  by  declaring  it  to  be  a  visitation  from  God  for  his  sins 
will  be  utterly  disappointed,  and  their  taunts  recoil  on  themselves 
to  their  shame  and  overthrow  (verse  10). 

The  Psalm,  in  common  with  nearly  all  in  the  first  Book,  is 
assigned  to  David  in  the  title.  There  is  no  period  in  David's  life 
known  to  us  to  which  it  would  be  specially  appropriate,  nor  is 
there  anything  in  the  language  to  enable  us  to  fix  date  or  author. 
Many  parallel  expressions  are  found  in  other  Psalms  and  in  the 
Book  of  Jeremiah,  and  it  might  well  have  proceeded  from  Jeremiah 
or  a  Job-like  sufferer  of  his  time.  It  has  been  used  in  the  Church 
for  centuries  as  the  first  of  the  Penitential  Psalms ;  and  though  it 
contains  no  expression  of  repentance  for  sin,  the  Psalm  may  be 
fitly  employed  by  the  godly  who  pray  for  help  in  time  of  trouble. 

Different  arrangements  of  the  contents  have  been  adopted, 
making  two,  three,  or  four  subdivisions  respectively.  The  simplest 
is  1-7,  earnest  prayer ;  8-io,  anticipated  triumph.  The  outburst 
in  verse  8  is  abrupt,  but  such  sudden  changes  are  not  infrequent 
in  the  Psalter. 

The  title  indicates  the  use  of  stringed  instruments  for  accompani- 
ment, apparently  with  double-bass  viol.     See  Introd.  p.  15. 

1.  A  distinction  is  here  recognized  between  two  rods,  one  of 
fatherly  chastisement  in  love,  the  other  of  severe  punishment  as 
an  expression  of  Divine  wrath.  This  distinction  is  marked  in 
Jer.  X.  24,  '  Correct  me,  but  with  judgement ;  not  in  anger ' ;  and  in 
xlvi,  28,  '  I  will  not  make  a  full  end,  but  correct  thee  in  measure,' 
or  *  I  will  correct  thee  with  judgement,  but  can  in  no  wise  leave 
thee  wholly  unpunished.'     The  language  of  the  Psalm  seems  to 


THE  PSALMS  6.  2-6  63 

Have  mercy  upon  me,  O  Lord  ;  for  I  am  withered  away :  2 

0  Lord,  heal  me ;  for  my  bones  are  vexed. 

My  soul  also  is  sore  vexed :  3 

And  thou,  O  Lord,  how  long? 

Return,  O  Lord,  deliver  my  soul :  4 

Save  me  for  thy  lovingkindness'  sake. 

For  in  death  there  is  no  remembrance  of  thee :  5 

In  Sheol  who  shall  give  thee  thanks  ? 

1  am  weary  with  my  groaning ;  6 
Every  night  make  I  my  bed  to  swim ; 

I  water  my  couch  with  my  tears. 

have  been  earlier  than  Jeremiah,  and  may  have  suggested  the 
thought  to  him.  The  significance  of  bodily  punishment  as  refor- 
matory chastisement  is  familiar  in  the  O.  T,,  but  the  Psalmist  pleads 
that  his  pain  goes  beyond  this. 

2.  Render,  'Be  gracious  unto  me,  for  I  languish.'  The  last 
word  is  used  in  Nah.  i.  4  of  Bashan  and  Lebanon  as  withering  in 
a  hot  wind. 

my  bones :  that  is,  the  very  framework  of  his  body  is  racked 
by  pain  and  shaken  by  exhausting  disease. 

3.  Mind  and  body  are  closely  connected,  but  in  this  case  pain  of 
mind  is  an  effect,  not  a  cause. 

how  long?  is  a  plaintive  plea  which  speaks  for  itself.  It 
was  frequently  used  by  Calvin,  a  great  bodily  sufferer,  and  it  is 
urged  by  the  souls  '  under  the  altar '  in  Rev.  vi.  10.  If  trial  is 
necessary,  may  it  not  end  soon  ? 

4.  5.  The  danger  of  death  is  not  fully  past,  and  the  Psalmist 
pleads  that  for  the  sake  of  God's  own  lovingkindness  he  may  not 
pass  from  the  state  of '  the  living  who  praise  thee '  (Isa.  xxxviii,  19) 
into  that  shadowy  region  where  God  can  neither  be  remembered 
nor  adored.  It  is  useless  to  try  to  explain  away  the  language  of 
this  and  other  similar  passages.  The  prayer  of  Hezekiah  in  his 
sickness  is  closely  parallel,  and  though  in  both  cases  the  utterance 
is  that  of  a  dark  mood,  it  is  such  as  the  pious  would  never  have 
indulged  in  had  the  clear  light  of  revelation  illumined  the  future. 

The  Hebrew  word  Sheol  is  retained  in  R.  V.— an  awkward 
necessity.  It  is  not,  nor  is  likely  to  be,  naturalized  in  English, 
yet  we  need  a  word  corresponding  to  the  Greek  Hades  to  describe 
the  shadowy  state  of  the  departed  spirit,  which  was  all  that  the 
Jew,  except  in  rare  moments  of  triumphant  faith,  had  to  anticipate 
when  this  life  was  over. 

6,  7.  The  Psalmist  is  still  in  pain,  and  weak,  passing  sleepless 


64  THE    PSALMS  6.  7-7.  r 

7  Mine  eye  wasteth  away  because  of  grief : 

It  waxcth  old  because  of  all  mine  adversaries. 

8  Depart  from  me,  all  ye  workers  of  iniquity  ; 

For  the  Lord  hath  heard  the  voice  of  my  weeping. 

9  The  Lord  hath  heard  my  supplication ; 
The  Lord  will  receive  my  prayer. 

10  All  mine  enemies  shall  be  ashamed  and  sore  vexed : 
They  shall  turn  back,  they  shall  be  ashamed  suddenly. 

7      Shiggaion  of  David,  which  he  sang  unto  the  Lord,  concerning 
the  Words  of  Cush  a  Benjamite. 

I   O  Lord  my  God,  in  thee  do  I  put  my  trust : 

Save  me  from  all  them  that  pursue  me,  and  deliver  me : 

and  weary  nights.  His  hollow  eyes  and  wasted  cheeks  tell  of 
the  severity  of  the  disease  which  has  sapped  his  strength.  The 
reproaches  of  scornful  foes  have  told  upon  him  and  helped  to 
*age '  him. 

8-10.  But  the  very  mention  of  these  rouses  him  to  sudden 
energy.  Light  dawns  from  above,  and  already  he  anticipates  the 
answer  to  his  prayer.  Faith  speaks  both  in  the  past  and  the 
future  tenses,  liath  heard  and  will  receive;  the  former  is  a 
prophetic  perfect,  for  in  some  way  a  Divine  manifestation  has 
been  granted  to  comfort  him.  Hence  he  anticipates  that  complete 
reversal  of  human  judgements  and  transference  of  his  own  shame 
and  dismay  to  his  adversaries,  which  will  come  about  when  his 
full  recovery  to  health  is  accomplished. 

Psalm  VIL     An  Appeal  to  the  Judge  of  All. 

The  title  of  this  Psalm  describes  it  as  Shig^raion,  a  dithyrambic 
song  of  irregular  structure  and  of  impassioned  character.  It  is 
attributed  to  David  under  circumstances  which  extant  history  does 
not  enable  us  to  identify.  '  Cush  the  Benjamite  '  is  not  otherwise 
known  to  us,  but  he  may  well  have  been  a  partisan  of  the  Benja- 
mite Saul.  Attempts  made  to  identify  him  with  Shimei,  see 
2  Sam.  xviii.  21,  or  with  an  'Ethiopian,'  or  with  Saul  himself,  are 
obviously  the  resorts  of  ignorance.  The  framer  of  the  title 
possessed  another,  and  it  may  be  an  earlier  or  fuller  tradition 
concerning  David's  history,  than  that  recorded  in  the  canonical 
books. 

There  is  no  good  reason  for  questioning  this  tradition.  The 
language  of  the  Psalm  is  vigorous,  and  appropriate  to  David  when 
persecuted   by  Saul.      Modern    commentators   object   that    the 


THE   PSALMS  7.  2-5  65 

Lest  he  tear  my  soul  like  a  lion,  2 

Rending  it  in  pieces,  while  there  is  none  to  deliver. 

O  Lord  my  God,  if  I  have  done  this ;  3 

If  there  be  iniquity  in  my  hands ; 

If  I  have  rewarded  evil  unto  him  that  was  at  peace  with  me ;  4 

(Yea,  I  have  delivered  him  that  without  cause  was  mine 

adversary :) 
Let  the  enemy  pursue  my  soul,  and  overtake  it ;  5 

mention  of  *  peoples  '  in  verses  8  and  9,  and  of  God  as  judge  of 
the  nations,  points  to  a  much  later  date  than  David's,  but  this  is 
surely  arbitrary.  The  chapters  in  i  Sam.  which  describe  David's 
life  during  his  persecution  by  Saul  present  many  interesting 
parallels  with  the  language  of  the  Psalm  (compare  i  Sam.  xxiv. 
12,  18  with  verses  3,  4),  and  no  student  of  Hebrew  literature  can 
ignore  that  prophetic  element  which  enables  the  writers  of  the 
Psalms  and  others  to  pass  bej'ond  the  immediate  circumstances  of 
their  own  time  and  discern  the  principles  of  Divine  government  in 
the  earth. 

The  Psalm  has  been  variously  divided,  but  seems  to  fall  naturally 
into  three  parts  :  15,  a  complaint ;  6-10,  an  urgent  plea;  n-17, 
confident  expectation  of  judgement. 

1,  2.  Render,  '  In  thee,  Jehovah  m}'  God,  have  I  taken  refuge.' 
Of  several  words  used  in  the  Psalms  for  '  trust,'  it  is  well  to 
preserve  by  this  rendering  the  distinctiveness  of  the  root  used 
here. 

There  is  nothing  inconsistent  between  the  mention  of  David's 
enemy  as  one,  or  as  many.  Whether  Saul's  rage  be  intended,  or 
some  directly  personal  insult  on  the  part  of  one  of  his  followers, 
it  would  be  natural  to  cry  out  against  all,  while  emphasizing  the 
rage  of  one. 

3,  4.  A  protestation  of  innocence  on  the  part  of  the  Psalmist. 
The  word  translated  iniquity  includes  a  perversion  of  right  in  two 
forms,  set  forth  in  the  two  clauses  of  verse  4.  The  more  serious 
would  be  a  wanton  outrage  on  the  peaceably  disposed  ;  the  lesser 
would  be  a  requital  of  evil  to  one  who  had  wantonly  attacked 
him.  Both  A.  V.  and  R.  V.  read  the  latter  clause  as  a  parenthesis, 
but  an  alternative,  simpler  and  on  the  whole  preferable,  would  be 
to  read : — 

*  If  I  have  wrought  evil  upon  him  that  was  at  peace  with  me, 

Or  despoiled  him  that  without  cause  was  mine  adversary.' 
Either  rendering  is  appropriate  in  David's  mouth  in  relation  to 
Saul,  as  I  Sam.  xxiv  and  xxvi  sufficiently  show. 


66  THE    PSALMS  7.  6-9. 

Yea,  let  him  tread  my  life  down  to  the  earth, 

And  lay  my  glory  in  the  dust.  [Selah 

6  Arise,  O  Lord,  in  thine  anger, 

Lift  up  thyself  against  the  rage  of  mine  adversaries  : 
And  awake  for  me ;  thou  hast  commanded  judgement. 

7  And  let  the  congregation  of  the  peoples  compass  thee 

about : 
And  over  them  return  thou  on  high. 

8  The  Lord  ministereth  judgement  to  the  peoples : 
Judge  me,  O  Lord,  according  to  my  righteousness,  and 

to  mine  integrity  that  is  iucme. 

9  Oh  let  the  wickedness  of  the  wicked  come  to  an  end,  but 

establish  thou  the  righteous  : 


5.  The  word  g-lory  here  is  used  as  synonymous  with  '  soul '  and 
Mife,'  but  the  meaning  is  not  precisely  the  same.  There  is  a 
climax  in  the  three  clauses — let  them  take  my  life  with  violence, 
and  even  bring  shame  upon  my  name  and  memory. 

6.  An  appeal  to  God  as  if  He  needed  to  be  aroused,  that  He 
would  manifest  that  righteousness  which  the  Psalmist  knows  to  be 
characteristic  of  His  government.  Render,  '  Awake  for  me,  thou 
that  hast  commanded  judgement,'  that  is,  ordained  it  for  others  and 
art  Thyself  its  source  and  fount. 

7.  The  Psalmist  desires  that  God  would  hold  a  great  assize,  as 
in  Psalm  1  and  Joel  iii,  that  the  righteous  Judge  of  all  would 
assume  and  exercise  His  functions.  So  far  the  meaning  is  clear, 
but  the  phraseology  is  not  quite  so  clear.  It  may  mean  (i)  Gather 
the  nations  together  and  return  to  heaven  as  the  judgement-seat 
before  whose  bar  they  will  be  called  ;  or  (2)  Judge  on  earth  and 
return  to  heaven  when  the  work  is  over ;  or  (3^!  Resume  the 
functions  which  it  might  appear  have  been  for  a  while  left  in 
abeyance  ;  or  (4),  with  an  alteration  of  the  pointing,  '  Take  thy 
seat  on  high.'  Of  these  either  the  first  or  the  last  is  the  best, 
according  to  whether  the  Massoretic  pointing  be  preserved 
or  not. 

8.  Judgement  has  begun  :  Jehovah  is  administering  it :  may 
the  Psalmist  be  vindicated  !  He  claims  not  to  be  free  from  all 
fault,  but  to  be  a  man  of  integritj',  guiltless  of  the  treachery 
towards  man  with  which  he  has  been  charged,  and  having  his 
heart  '  right  with  God ' ;  see  verse  10. 


THE    PSALMS  7.  10-15  67 

For  the  righteous  God  trieth  the  hearts  and  reins. 

My  shield  is  with  God,  10 

Which  saveth  the  upright  in  heart. 

God  is  a  righteous  judge,  i  r 

Yea,  a  God  that  hath  indignation  every  day. 

If  a  man  turn  not,  he  will  whet  his  sword ;  12 

He  hath  bent  his  bow,  and  made  it  ready. 

He  hath  also  prepared  for  him  the  instruments  of  death;  13 

He  maketh  his  arrows  fiery  shafts. 

Behold,  he  travaileth  with  iniquity ;  14 

Yea,    he  hath   conceived   mischief,   and   brought   forth 

falsehood. 
He  hath  made  a  pit,  and  digged  it,  15 

And  is  fallen  into  the  ditch  which  he  made. 

9,  10.  hearts  and  reins.  In  the  O.T.,  and  generally  throughout 
the  Bible,  the  heart  is  the  centre  of  personal  life  and  the  reins  are 
the  seat  of  the  emotions, 

11.  The  Psalmist  has  been  crying  for  justice,  that  God  would 
set  up  His  tribunal  and  declare  sentence.  But  this  must  not  be 
misunderstood.  This  verse  shows  that  he  knows  well  that  God 
is  always  sitting  as  righteous  Judge,  that  His  wrath  arises  against 
the  evil  which  day  by  day  is  being  committed,  and  that  punishment 
will  surely  come. 

12,  13.  The  preparation  for  such  punishment  is  here  described. 
But  weapons  of  war,  sharp  sword  and  fiery  arrows,  are  named, 
rather  than  the  cord  and  dungeon  of  a  criminal  court.  These 
words  are  often  used  to  describe  the  vengeance  which  the  wicked 
inflict  upon  the  righteous,  and  the  text  says  that  with  their  own 
scourge  they  shall  be  smitten.  The  secrecy  and  suddenness  with 
which  arrows  strike  make  them  fit  symbols  of  Divine  judgements, 
and  His  lightnings  are  the  fire-darts  which  consume  wherever 
they  fall. 

14.  The  figures  of  speech  — conceive,  travail,  bring  forth— which 
represent  the  birth  and  growth  of  sin,  are  not  infrequent  in  the 
Bible  ;  see  especially  Jas.  i.  15.  A  sorry  process  of  generation 
this,  of  which  the  end  is  at  best  nothingness.  More  usually  the 
dire  and  unhallowed  progeny  proves  full  of  mischief  for  the  parent 
himself  and  for  all  besides.  Compare  Milton's  terrible  picture  of 
Death  as  the  offspring  of  Sin  and  Satan  in  Paradise  Lost,  Book  ii. 

15.  Render  the  second  clause,  *  And  falleth  into  the  ditch  which 

F   2 


68  THE   PSALMS  7.  16^8.  i 

16  His  mischief  shall  return  upon  his  own  head, 

And  his  violence  shall  come  down  upon  his  own  pate. 

17  I   will  give   thanks   unto  the   Lord   according   to   his 

righteousness : 
And  will  sing  praise  to  the  name  of  the  Lord  Most  High. 

8    For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  set  to  the  Gittith.    A  Psalm  of  David. 
I  O  Lord,  our  Lord, 
How  excellent  is  thy  name  in  all  the  earth ! 
Who  hast  set  thy  glory  upon  the  heavens. 

he  was  making.'  The  tense  brings  out  the  fact  that  even  while 
digging  deeply  and  with  care,  he  is  buried  in  his  own  trench,  caught 
in  his  own  trap, 

16.  A  third  figure,  to  set  forth  the  same  truth.  The  wicked 
man  is  '  hoist  with  his  own  petard,'  holden  with  the  cords  of  his 
own  sins,  Prov.  v.  22  ;  or,  as  in  this  verse,  the  stone  which  he  has 
thrown  at  others  recoils  on  his  own  head. 

17.  The  storm  settles  into  calm.  The  Psalmist  returns  to  the 
strain  of  the  first  verse  ;  but  instead  of  the  trust  with  which  he 
had  committed  his  cause  to  God,  we  find  a  note  of  praise  to  Him 
who  has  virtually  answered  his  prayer.  For  a  detached  note  on 
El  'Elyon,  a  name  of  '  God  Most  High,'  used  chiefly  in  poetry,  see 
P-  359- 

Psalm  VIH.     The  Glory  of  God  seen  in  the  true 
Dignity  of  Man. 

The  subject  of  this  Psalm  is  not,  as  is  often  represented,  the 
glory  of  God  in  nature,  nor.the  glory  of  man,  nor  the  glory  of  the 
Messiah  as  such,  but  the  glory  of  God  reflected  in  the  fact  that  He 
has  made  a  creature  in  many  respects  so  insignificant  and  pun3' 
as  man,  lord  of  creation  around,  because  he  is  vicegerent  of  God 
upon  the  earth.  The  glory  of  the  heavens  is  doubtless  noted  in 
passing,  the  glories  of  the  earthly  creation  also,  and  of  man  to 
whom  the  dominion  of  earth  is  given  ;  yet  is  he  but  a  babe, 
ignorant  and  frail,  a  mere  speck  in  the  presence  of  the  vast  uni- 
verse as  seen  in  the  nightly  sky.  Precisely  at  this  point  the  glory 
of  God  appears,  who  has  given  to  such  an  infant  of  days  such 
dignity  and  capacity  ;  God  has  been  mindful  of  him,  and  given  him 
a  place  in  the  universal  order  little  less  than  Divine. 

Modern  astronomy  has  in  no  way  weakened  the  lessons  of  this 
Psalm.  It  has  rather  deepened  and  intensified  them,  while  biology 
and  psychology  and  modern  science  as  a  whole  have  added  to  their 


THE   PSALMS  8.  2  69 

Out  of  the  mouth  of  babes  and  sucklings  hast  thou  2 

established  strength, 
Because  of  thine  adversaries, 


meaning  on  the  human  side.  With  the  religious  aspects  of  these 
truths  physical  science  is  not  concerned,  but  the  Psalmist  has 
touched  bed-rock  in  the  relations  between  nature  and  man  and 
God,  which  no  changes  in  the  extent  of  our  knowledge  has  dis- 
turbed, or  can  disturb. 

The  Psalm  is  quoted  in  Heb.  ii.  6,  where  the  original  meaning  of 
verses  4-6  is  brought  out  and  raised  to  a  higher  level.  Man,  says 
the  writer  of  the  Epistle,  has  not  yet  fulfilled  his  high  functions 
or  realized  his  true  glory.  We  see  not  yet  this  lordship  of  his 
attained,  but  in  and  through  the  Incarnation  we  see  in  One  who 
took  on  him  our  nature  and  in  it  submitted  to  death,  crowned  with 
glory  and  honour,  the  pledge  and  earnest  of  the  fulfilment  of  all 
the  high  promise  of  this  Psalm,  and  much  more  besides. 

The  title  attributes  the  Psalm  to  David.  Certainly  it  was 
written  before  Job  vii.  17  and  Ps.  cxliv.  4,  which  make  use  of  its 
language  in  very  different  ways.  If  written  by  David— and  there 
is  no  good  reason  to  the  contrary — it  is  not  probable  that  it  was 
written  during  his  shepherd-days,  but  rather  as  the  late  result  of 
earlier  meditations  under  the  stars. 

For  the  phrase  '  On  the  Gittith  '  see  Introd.  p.  15.     It  has  been 
understood  to  mean  (i)  accompanied  by  an  instrument  named  from  \ 
Gath  ;  (2)  to  a  tune  of  Gath  ;  (3)  a  march  of  the  Gittite  guard  ;  ' 
(4)  to  be  sung  to  the  tune  of  a  vintage-hj'mn.     The  first  and  the 
last  suppositions  appear  the  most  likely. 

1.  Render, 

'  Jehovah,  our  Lord,  how  glorious  is  thy  name  in  all  the  earth  ! 

Thou  whose  majesty  reacheth  above  the  heavens.' 
Yalnveh  is  here  the  covenant  name  of  God,  the  title  '  our  Lord ' 
being  added  to  indicate  Israel's  close  relationship  as  a  community 
to  Him.  The  Hebrew  of  the  second  clause  it  is  almost  impossible 
to  translate  as  now  pointed.  The  renderings  of  A.  V.  and  R.  V. 
imply  a  different  text.  The  translation  given  above  is  based  on 
a  slightly  changed  vocalization. 

2.  'Ordained  strength,'  or  'established  a  stronghold,' but  the 
latter  implies  somewhat  too  bold  a  figure.  The  LXX  reads 
'  perfected  praise,'  and  is  so  quoted  in  Matt.  xxi.  16.  The  phrase 
does  not  refer  to  those  who  are  children  in  age,  though  the  appli- 
cation of  the  words  made  in  the  N.  T.  is  natural  and  beautiful.  Child- 
hood does  furnish  its  own  witness  to  God.  The  thought  of  the 
verse,  however,  is  that  God  establishes  His  own  glory  by  means 


70  THE    PSALMS  8.  3-8 

That  thou  mightest  still  the  enemy  and  the  avenger. 

3  ^Vhen  I  consider  thy  heavens,  the  work  of  thy  fingers, 
The  moon  and  the  stars,  which  thou  hast  ordained ; 

4  What  is  man,  that  thou  art  mindful  of  him  ? 
And  the  son  of  man,  that  thou  visitest  him  ? 

5  For  thou  hast  made  him  but  little  lower  than  God, 
And  crownest  him  with  glory  and  honour. 

6  Thou  madest  him  to  have  dominion  over  the  works  of  thy 

hands ; 
Thou  hast  put  all  things  under  his  feet : 

7  All  sheep  and  oxen, 

Yea,  and  the  beasts  of  the  field ; 

8  The  fowl  of  the  air,  and  the  fish  of  the  sea, 
Whatsoever  passeth  through  the  paths  of  the  seas. 

Render,  'To  still  the  enemy  and  the  vengeful.'  The  nobler 
word  aveug'er  is  not  in  place  here.  Does  this  point  to  non. 
Israelitic  foes?  The  question  cannot  be  definitely  answered,  but 
it  is  better  to  understand  the  phrase  quite  generally  of  all  who 
oppose  God. 

3,  4.  This  passage  implies  a  night  scene,  as  Ps.  xix  sets  forth 
the  splendours  of  the  sunshine  and  the  day.  Render,  '  What  is 
frail  man  ? '  The  v/ord  Enosh  denotes  man  in  his  weakness,  while 
the  parallel  expression  son  of  man  describes  the  race  of  man 
generally  as  man  upon  the  earth.  The  word  visit  is  sometimes 
applied  to  judgement,  Ps.  lix.  5  ;  Exod.  xxxii.  34  :  sometimes  to 
a  coming  of  God  in  mercy,  Jer.  xxix.  10;  Luke  vii.  16.  Here  it 
clearly  means  *  remember  and  care  for.'  Cheyne  says,  '  Visitation 
is  the  Hebrew  equivalent  for  special  providence.' 

The  bitter  turn  given  to  these  words  in  Job  vii.  17  shows  that 
when  that  chapter  was  written  the  phrase  must  have  been  some 
time  known  and  familiar. 

5,  6.  Render,  '  For  thou  hast  made  him  little  less  than  Divine.' 
The  LXX  Version  refers  Elohim  to  the  angels,  and  is  followed  in 
Heb.  ii.  6.  But  most  interpreters  translate  as  R.  V.,  and  the 
distinct  reference  to  Gen.  i.  26  throughout  the  context  confirms 
this. 

7,  8.  Render,  '  Sheep  and  oxen,  all  of  them.'  The  creatures 
are  enumerated  by  kinds  as  in  Gen.  i.  21,  hut  only  as  representing 
all  creation.  If  modern  science  has  emphasized  man's  physical 
kinship  with  the  higher  animals,  it  has  indefinitely  widened  and 


THE   PSALMS  8.  9—9.  1  ^l 

0  Lord,  our  Lord,  9 
How  excellent  is  thy  name  in  all  the  earth ! 

For  the  Chief  Musician  ;    set  to  Muth-labben.     A  Psalm  of  David.  9 

1  will  give  thanks  unto  the  Lord  with  my  whole  heart ;     1 
I  will  shew  forth  all  thy  marvellous  works. 

deepened  the  gulf  between  the  two   in   other  respects.      Man's  ) 
'  natural  '  sovereignty  was  never  so  clear  as  to-day. 

9.  The  last  verse  strikes  again  the  same  note  as  the  first.  But, 
as  one  may  say,  it  sounds  an  octave  higher,  after  the  intervening 
melody — the  thesis  is  reiterated  with  emphasis  after  the  proof  and 
illustration  given.  It  would  be  well  if  the  first  and  last  verses  of 
the  Psalm  were  printed  apart  from  the  rest,  as  a  double  utterance 
of  its  great  theme. 

Psalm  IX.    Thanksgiving  for  the  Overthrow  of  Enemies. 

The  relation  between  Pss,  ix  and  x  is  said  to  present  *  an  un- 
solved literary  problem.'  The  two  are  closely  connected,  but 
amongst  many  theories  as  to  the  history  of  this  connexion  two 
may  be  said  to  divide  the  field.  The  two  Psalms  may  have 
originally  formed  one  whole,  as  they  do  now  in  the  LXX  and  other 
versions,  or  Ps.  x  may  form  a  later  addition  to  a  much  earlier 
composition.  Together  they  form  an  acrostic,  very  irregularly 
constructed.  In  Ps.  ix  are  the  rudiments  of  an  alphabetic  arrange- 
ment. In  verse  1  each  of  the  four  lines  begins  with  Alcplt,  then 
the  verses  are  arranged  in  pairs,  the  pairs  beginning  with  the 
letters  of  the  Hebrew  alphabet  successively,  but  the  Daleth 
section  is  missing.  In  verse  6  the  He  cannot  be  traced  according 
to  the  present  text  (a  slight  change  of  reading  would,  however, 
remedy  this\  and  verse  18  begins  with  Koph  instead  of  Caph. 
In  X.  I  the  alphabetic  arrangement  is  taken  up  again,  but  dropped 
till  verse  12  is  reached,  when  the  pairs  begin  with  the  last  four 
letters  of  the  alphabet. 

There  is  considerable  resemblance  in  the  phraseology  of  the 
two  Psalms,  but  the  whole  situation  in  the  two  cases  appears  to 
be  different,  and  it  seems  better  to  regard  Ps.  x  as  a  later 
Psalm  composed  as  an  appendix,  or  a  continuation  of  the  earlier 
under  different  conditions,  rather  than  as  part  of  a  Psalm  which 
from  the  beginning  was  one  whole.  Delitzsch  says,  '  If  we 
read  Ps.  ix  along  with  Ps.  x,  uno  tenore,  the  latter  becomes  a  tail 
which  disfigures  it.' 

If  this  view  is  correct,  Ps.  ix  might  be  Davidic,  as  it  presents 
manj'  points  of  contact  with  Ps.  vii,  while  Ps.  x  would  date  from 
the  later  Monarchy,  or  alter  the  Exile.    Or  x.  3-1 1  may  have  been 


72  THE   PSALMS  9.  2-5 

2  I  will  be  glad  and  exult  in  thee : 

I  will  sing  praise  to  thy  name,  O  thou  Most  High. 

3  When  mine  enemies  turn  back, 

They  stumble  and  perish  at  thy  presence. 

4  For  thou  hast  maintained  my  right  and  my  cause ; 
Thou  satest  in  the  throne  judging  righteously. 

5  Thou  hast  rebuked  the  nations,  thou  hast  destroyed  the 

wicked. 


worked  in  from  another  Psalm,  as  this  section  breaks  the  structure 
and  presents  characteristics  of  its  own.  The  similarity  of  language 
in  Pss.  ix  and  x  is  thought  by  some  to  be  so  striking — 'harsh, 
obscure  and  lapidarically  terse,'  Delitzsch  calls  it — that  they 
consider  the  two  must  be  ascribed  to  one  author,  though  not 
originally  forming  one  Psalm. 

There  is  no  distinctly  traceable  connexion  of  thought  between 
the  pairs  of  verses  in  Ps.  ix,  but  it  is  distinctly  national,  as 
Ps.  X  is  strongly  personal,  and  the  former  as  clearly  gives  thanks 
for  victories  already  achieved,  closing  with  confident  anticipation 
of  further  triumph,  as  the  latter  complains  of  the  predominance 
of  evil  in  one  community. 

The  title,  set  to  Muth-labben,  must  be  understood  as  the  name 
of  a  melody,  '  Death  to  the  son.'  It  is  useless  to  conjecture  its 
meaning  further.  It  may  be  that  the  text  is  corrupt,  as  the 
versions  appear  to  follow  another  reading. 

1,  2.  An  outburst  of  praise  inspired  by  a  victory  apparently 
recent.  Divine  intervention  on  behalf  of  Israel  is  often  described 
as  'a  marvellous  work.'  The  line  between  the  natural  and  the 
supernatural  was  not  very  closely  defined  for  the  pious  Jew,  who 
could  trace  the  hand  of  God  alike  in  the  rising  of  a  storm,  the 
outbreak  of  a  pestilence,  or  the  dissension  of  enemies  among 
themselves  leading  to  their  defeat ;  and  would  number  all  these 
among  the  '  wonderful  doings '  of  the  Most  High.  Compare 
Ixxviii.  12,  xcviii.  i. 

3,  4.  Join  these  verses  closely  with  the  former  and  render, 
'  Because  mine  enemies  turn  back,  They  stumble  and  perish  at 
thy  presence.'  The  defeat  is  fresh  in  recollection,  and  is  marked 
by  three  stages— retreat,  stumbling,  fall  and  final  overthrow. 
But  all  is  traced  to  the  action  of  God,  who  is  represented  as 
occup3'ing  the  seat  of  judgement,  and  giving  sentence  in  favour 
of  Israel  and  against  their  enemies  by  giving  the  victory  to  the 
former. 

5,  6.    A   striking   description   of    complete    overthrow.      The 


THE   PSALMS  9.  6-12  73 

Thou  hast  blotted  out  their  name  for  ever  and  ever. 
The  enemy  are  come  to  an  end,  they  are  desolate  for  ever  ;   6 
And  the  cities  which  thou  hast  overthrown, 
Their  very  memorial  is  perished. 

But  the  Lord  sitteth  as  king  for  ever  :  7 

He  hath  prepared  his  throne  for  judgement. 
And  he  shall  judge  the  world  in  righteousness-,  8 

He  shall  minister  judgement  to  the  peoples  in  uprightness. 
The  Lord  also  will  be  a  high  tower  for  the  oppressed,        9 
A  high  tower  in  times  of  trouble ; 

And  they  that  know  thy  name  will  put  their  trust  in  thee ;  10 
For  thou,  Lord,  hast  not  forsaken  them  that  seek  thee. 
Sing  praises  to  the  Lord,  which  dwelleth  in  Zion :  11 

Declare  among  the  people  his  doings. 

For  he  that  maketh  inquisition  for  blood  remembereth  12 
them : 

enemy  appear  to  be  nations  around,  who  fear  not  God.  The 
cities  are  described  as  'perpetual  ruins.'  The  Hebrew  word 
for  'destroy'  means  'uproot,'  the  destruction  is  'radical*  and — 
always  a  striking  feature  in  the  East,  where  traditions  are  so 
long  and  carefully  preserved — 'the  very  remembrance  of  them  is 
perished.' 

7,  8.  The  Psalmist  passes  from  thinking  of  the  past  to  confidence 
in  the  future,  especially  dwelling  on  the  thought  of  God  as  king 
of  the  whole  earth.  Note  R,  V.  peoples ;  A.  V.  renders  *  people,' 
which  is  misleading  ns  regards  a  cardinal  feature  of  the  Psalm. 
The  nations  of  the  whole  habitable  earth  belong  to  God,  and  their 
affairs  shall  be  administered  by  Him  in  equity. 

9,  10.  Hence  will  be  realized  what  appears  to  the  Oriental, 
unaccustomed  to  equitable  rule,  as  a  description  of  a  'millennium,' 
that  the  oppressed  shall  alwaj's  find  a  helper,  a  stronghold  against 
the  prevalent  oppressor.  The  defence  which  the  knight's  castle 
or  the  walled  town  furnished  in  the  Middle  Ages  against  lawless 
bands  of  spoilers,  the  name  of  God  shall  be,  as  a  high  tower 
whereinto  one  may  run  and  be  safe. 

11,  12.  Praise  is  in  these  verses  rendered  to  God  because  He 
remembers  the  poor  or  '  meek '  (R.  V.  marg.)  or  '  humble,*  who 
cannot  defend  themselves.  There  is  One  who  '  requireth  blood,' 
so  the  phrase  should  be  rendered,  as  in  Gen.  ix.  5, '  Whoso  sheddeth 


"74  THE   PSALMS  9.  13-17 

He  forgetteth  not  the  cry  of  the  poor. 

13  Have  mercy  upon  me,  O  Lord; 

Behold  my  affliction  7vhich  I  suffer  of  them  that  hate  me, 
Thou  that  Hftest  me  up  from  the  gates  of  death ; 

14  That  I  may  shew  forth  all  thy  praise : 
In  the  gates  of  the  daughter  of  Zion, 
I  will  rejoice  in  thy  salvation. 

15  The  nations  are  sunk  down  in  the  pit  that  they  made : 
In  the  net  which  they  hid  is  their  own  foot  taken. 

16  The  Lord  hath  made  himself  known,  he  hath  executed 

judgement : 
The  wicked  is  snared  in  the  work  of  his  own  hands. 

[Higgaion.  Selah 

17  The  wicked  shall  return  to  Sheol, 

man's  blood,  by  man  shall  his  blood  be  shed.'  Though  this  be 
rude  justice,  it  represents  a  standard  of  retribution  higher  than  in 
many  ages  and  countries  has  proved  attainable.  The  text  hesitates 
between  two  words  in  verse  12,  *  poor '  and  '  meek.'  In  the 
Hebrew  these  two  are  closely  akin  in  root  and  meaning,  and  often 
confused  with  one  another ;  the  reference  here  is  apparently  to  the 
'  afflicted,'  those  bowed  down  under  the  oppressor. 

13,  14.  Some  critics  are  disposed  to  advocate  a  change  of 
tenses  in  verse  13  :  '  God  hath  been  gracious  :  Thou  hast  lifted  me 
up.'  But  the  blending  of  praise  and  prayer  is  common  in  the 
Psalms ;  Delitzsch  supposes  this  to  be  a  prayer  before  battle.  The 
victory  already  gained  may  not  have  been  so  complete  as  to 
preclude  the  necessity  for  prayer  that  God  would  carry  on  His 
work  of  deliverance.  The  Psalmist  asks  that,  having  been  delivered 
from  imminent  death,  he  may  show  forth  all  God's  praise  in  the 
gates  of  the  daughter  of  Zion,  i.  e.  publicly,  in  the  place  of 
concourse — market-place  or  town-square,  as  moderns  would  say — 
amongst  the  citizens  of  the  victorious  capital. 

15,  16.  The  Psalmist  encourages  himself  by  the  manifestation 
of  Divine  righteousness  which  has  taken  place  before  his  eyes,  and 
so  prepares  the  way  for  the  confident  expectation  expressed  in 
the  next  stanza,  17  and  18. 

Higgaion  and  Selah  are  musical  notes,  probably  indicating 
a  solemn  and  a  triumphant  interlude  respective!}'.    See  Introd.  p.  15. 

17,  18.  '  Turned  into  hell '  (A.  V.)  gives  an  entire  misconception 
of  the  Psalmist's  meaning.  Return  to  Sheol  simply  means  '  be 
overthrown  and  die.'     The  strict  meaning  of  '  return '  should  not 


THE   PSALMS  9.  18— 10.  i  75 

Even  all  thq  nations  that  forget  God. 

For  the  needy  shall  not  alway  be  forgotten,  18 

Nor  the  cxj^ectation  of  the  poor  perish  for  ever. 

Arise,  O  Lord  ;  let  not  man  prevail :  ^  9 

Let  the  nations  be  judged  in  thy  sight. 

Put  them  in  fear,  O  Lord  :  20 

Let  the  nations  know  themselves  to  be  but  men.    [Selah 

Why  standest  thou  afar  off,  O  Lord  ?  10 

Why  hidest  thou  thyself  in  times  of  trouble  ? 

be  pressed.  It  may  have  reference  to  Gen.  iii.  19,  and  man's 
going  back  to  the  dust  from  which  he  was  taken,  but  such 
passages  as  Job  i.  21,  '  Naked  came  I  out  of  my  mother's  womb, 
and  naked  shall  I  return  thither,'  indicate  a  less  literal  use  of  the 
word.  Notice  the  name  '  Elohim,'  the  God  of  the  whole  earth,  not 
*Yahweh,'  the  covenant  God  of  Israel. 

The  word  poor  in  verse  18  is  not  equivalent  to  the  '  afflicted ' 
of  verse  12.  Render,  'The  patient  abiding  of  the  meek  shall  not 
perish  for  ever.'  The  moral  quality  of  those  who  have  learned  the 
lesson  of  affliction  is  intended  here. 

19,  20.  Man  is  frail  and  mortal,  but  he  is  too  apt  to  forget  this 
in  presumptuous  rebellion  against  God  and  defiance  of  the  law  of 
righteousness.  The  Psalmist  prays  that  God  will  show  the  nations 
who  have  proudly  exalted  themselves  against  Israel,  and  who  may 
easily  do  so  again,  their  inherent  weakness,  that  they  ma}-  learn 
to  reverence  Jehovahj  Israel's  God. 

Psalm  X.     A  Prayer  of  the  Oppressed. 

The  enemy  in  this  Psalm,  or  part  of  a  Psalm,  must  be  understood 
to  mean  the  wicked  within  the  pale  of  Israel,  and  the  complaint  of 
the  Psalmist  concerns  the  condition  of  the  righteous  within  his 
own  community.  A  different  state  of  society  from  that  described 
in  Ps.  ix  is  implied  here,  a  much  more  considerable  difference  than 
that  '  change  of  mood '  which  Cheyne  thinks  has  caused  '  a  later 
editor  to  bisect  the  Psalm.' 

No  very  definite  outline  of  thought  is  discernible,  but  we  may 
say  that  verses  i  and  2  describe  the  state  of  the  land  generally ; 
verses  3- 11  contain  a  sharply  defined  characterization  of  the 
wicked  which  may  very  well  have  come  from  another  source  ; 
while  verses  12-18,  including  stanzas  from  Koph  to  Tau,  the 
last  four  letters  of  the  alphabet,  appeal  to  God  to  intervene  and 
break  the  power  of  the  ungodly. 


76  THE   PSALMS    10.  2-6 

2  In  the  pride  of  the  wicked  the  poor  is  hotly  pursued ; 
Let  them  be  taken  in  the  devices  that  they  have  imagined. 

3  For  the  wicked  boasteth  of  his  heart's  desire, 

And  the  covetous  renounceth,  yea,  contemneth  the  Lord. 

4  The  wicked,  in  the  pride  of  his  countenance,  saith^  He 

will  not  require  //. 
All  his  thoughts  are,  There  is  no  God. 

5  His  ways  are  firm  at  all  times ; 

Thy  judgements  are  far  above  out  of  his  sight : 
As  for  all  his  adversaries,  he  puffeth  at  them. 

6  He  saith  in  his  heart,  I  shall  not  be  moved : 
To  all  generations  I  shall  not  be  in  adversity. 

1,  2.  '  Why  dost  thou  hide  thyself? '  God  is  sometimes  said  to 
hide  His  eyes,  Isa.  i.  15  ;  sometimes  His  ears,  i.  e.  be  deaf, 
Lam.  iii.  56 ;  sometimes,  as  here,  Himself,  see  Isa.  xlv.  15. 
Such  a  state  of  mind  as  that  described  in  the  latter  part  of 
Ps.  ix  is  remote ;  the  conditions  have  changed  and  the  tone 
of  the  Psalmist's  plea  differs  accordingly. 

3.  Here  begins  a  section  which  fits  fairly  well  into  the  body  of 
the  Psalm,  but  it  has  been  adjudged  as  of  different  origin,  partly 
because  of  the  breaking  of  the  alphabetic  structure,  partly  because 
of  its  abrupt  opening,  and  partly  because  of  the  characteristic  style. 
'  The  description  of  the  wicked  is  as  a  black  rock  damming  the 
river,  but  it  flows  on  beneath  and  emerges  beyond.'  (Maclaren.) 
Render,  *  And  in  his  covetousness  renounceth ' ;  boasting  that  he 
has  all  he  wants  without  acknowledging  God,  the  wicked  man 
renounces  all  allegiance,  and  even  ventures  in  practice  to  despise 
God. 

4.  As  elsewhere  the  Psalmist  says,  '  I  am — prayer,*  so  here  he 
says,  'All  the  thoughts  of  the  wicked  are— no  God.'  The  word 
for  thoughts  means  properly  deep  and  artful  devices,  hence  it  is 
not  the  ideas  merely,  but  the  whole  course  of  action  of  the  wicked 
which  is  said  to  imply  that  there  is  no  God,  or  none  who  takes 
notice  of  men. 

5.  6.  His  ways  are  firm.  Compare  Ixxiii.  4.  5,  'Their  strength 
is  firm.'  The  experience  might  be  illustrated  from  W.  Watson's 
bitter  poem  : — 

'Fortune,  I  fear,  hath  oftenest  come, 
When  we  forgot,  when  we  forgot ! ' 

The  man  in  prosperity  scorns  the  possibility  of  change. 


THE   PSALMS  10.  7-13  77 

His  mouth  is  full  of  cursing  and  deceit  and  oppression  :     7 

Under  his  tongue  is  mischief  and  iniquity. 

He  sitteth  in  the  lurking  places  of  the  villages  :  8 

In  the  covert  places  doth  he  murder  the  innocent : 

His  eyes  are  privily  set  against  the  helpless. 

He  lurketh  in  the  covert  as  a  lion  in  his  den :  9 

He  lieth  in  wait  to  catch  the  poor : 

He  doth  catch  the  poor,  when  he  draweth  him  in  his  net. 

He  croucheth,  he  boweth  down,  10 

And  the  helpless  fall  by  his  strong  ones. 

He  saith  in  his  heart,  God  hath  forgotten :  11 

He  hideth  his  face ;  he  will  never  see  it. 

Arise,  O  Lord  ;  O  God,  hft  up  thine  hand  :  12 

Forget  not  the  poor. 

Wherefore  doth  the  wicked  contemn  God,  13 

And  say  in  his  heart,  Thou  wilt  not  require  //? 

*7.  A  description  of  the  evil  words  of  the  evil  man  ;  he  is 
proficient  in  (i)  railing,  (2)  lying,  and  (3)  bullying ;  there  is 
a  store  of  such  precious  wares  as  it  were  hoarded  in  his  mouth 
and  under  Ms  tongue,  for  '  out  of  the  abundance  of  the  heart  the 
mouth  speaketh.' 

8-11.  Various  kinds  of  ill  treatment  are  inflicted  on  those  who 
are  too  feeble  to  resist  it.  The  unwalled  villages  were  open  to 
the  depredations  of  men  who  were  little  better  than  brigands. 
Jephthah  gathered  such  a  band  of  discontented  'vain  fellows' 
round  him,  Judges  xi.  3;  the  passage  Prov.  i.  10  describes  their 
habits  at  length  ;  compare  also  Hos.  vi.  9,  and  the  man  in  Luke 
X.  30  who  fell  among  robbers  on  the  Jericho  road.  The  imperfect 
tenses  used  through  the  paragraph  indicate  persistent  habit. 

An  emphasis  is  laid  on  the  ambush,  the  secret  preparation  before 
the  open  violence.  The  figure  sometimes  seems  to  be  that  of 
a  wild  beast  lurking  for  prey,  sometimes  (verse  10)  as  of  a  slave- 
hunter  dragging  his  victim  into  imprisonment,  and  bending  and 
crouching  the  better  to  take  him  unawares.  In  verse  ir  is 
a  fresh  statement  of  the  God-ignoring,  God-contemning  spirit  in 
which  this  compound  of  the  oppressor  and  the  coward  carries  on 
his  nefarious  practices. 

la,  13.  An  appeal  that  God  will  manifest  Himself,  and  show 
that  this  arrogant  self-confidence  is  vain. 


78  THE  PSALMS  10.  14-18 

14  Thou  hast  seen  it\  for  thou  beholdest  mischief  and  spite, 

to  take  it  into  thy  hand : 
The  helpless  committeth  himself  mvXo  thee; 
Thou  hast  been  the  helper  of  the  fatherless. 

15  Break  thou  the  arm  of  the  wicked ; 

And  as  for  the  evil  man,  seek  out  his  wickedness  till  thou 
find  none. 

16  The  Lord  is  King  for  ever  and  ever : 
The  nations  are  perished  out  of  his  land. 

17  Lord,  thou  hast  heard  the  desire  of  the  meek : 

Thou  wilt  prepare  their  heart,  thou  wilt  cause  thine  ear 
to  hear : 

18  To  judge  the  fatherless  and  the  oppressed. 

That  man  which  is  of  the  earth  may  be  terrible  no  more. 

14.  The  Psalmist  is  sure  that  God  sees  all  this  and  watches, 
not  '  that  He  may  require  it*  (A.  V.),  but  that  he  may  'take  it  into 
His  own  hand,'  rule  and  cver-rule,  as  He  did  the  evil-doing  of 
Joseph's  brethren  (Gen.  xlv.  5,  8).  God  has  been  the  helper  of  the 
needy  in  the  past,  but  the  Psalmist  desires  to  see  a  fresh  proof  of 
His  power. 

15.  seek  oiit  may  mean  (i)  require,  1.  e.  punish,  or  (2)  extirpate, 
destroy.  The  former  seems  to  be  the  meaning  ;  as  a  strict  judge 
may  do  his  work  so  thoroughly  that  there  shall  be  a  clean  sheet  at 
the  next  assize. 

16.  A  note  of  triumph  in  the  midst  of  trouble,  as  in  Ps.  ix 
a  pleading  note  occurs  in  the  midst  of  triumph.  The  mention  of 
nations  again  reminds  us  of  Ps.  ix.  Probably  are  perished 
is  a  prophetic  perfect  :  God  is  King,  and  will  not  let  the  ururper 
rule  long  in  a  realm  of  which  He  says,  'The  land  is  mine,'  Lev. 
XXV.  23. 

17.  18.  The  faith  of  the  saints  shall  be  justified.  In  the  last 
line  read,  '  That  mortals  of  the  earth  may  be  terrible  no  more.' 
Echoes  of  Ps.  ix  are  heard  again  ere  the  close.  Puny  man 
is  to  be  shown  his  true  position.  '■  Dressed  in  a  little  brief 
authority,'  he  has  played  'fantastic  tricks  before  high  heaven,' 
but  he  shall  do  so  no  longer.  When  the  God  who  has  been 
hiding  Himself  takes  their  mischief  and  spite  into  His  own  hand, 
its  powerlessness  shall  be  seen,  and,  in  the  words  of  another 
Psalm,  the  meek  shall  inherit  the  land  and  delight  themselves  in 
the  abundance  of  peace. 


THE   PSALMS  11.  i-^  79 

For  the  Chief  Musician.     A  Psalm  of  David.  11 

In  the  Lord  put  I  my  trust :  i 

How  say  ye  to  my  soul, 
Flee  as  a  bird  to  your  mountain  ? 

For,  lo,  the  wicked  bend  the  bow,  3 

They  make  ready  their  arrow  upon  the  string, 
That  they  may  shoot  in  darkness  at  the  upright  in  heart. 
If  the  foundations  be  destroyed,  3 

Psalm  XI.     The  Song  of  the  Steadfast. 

A  true  lyric,  flowing  forth  at  one  rush  of  the  stream,  broken 
somewhat  in  its  fall,  but  with  many  glancing  lights  and  colours, 
as  well  as  shadows,  playing  over  it.  It  is  bright,  cheerful, 
trustful— Greatheart's  reply  to  Faintheart.  If  the  marks  of 
David's  style  are  freshness,  vividness  and  force,  fuch  as  belong 
to  an  early  age  of  psalmody ;  a  clear,  direct  outlook,  like 
Chaucer's,  upon  the  facts  of  life  ;  a  just  perception  of  the  bearing 
of  these  upon  religion  and  the  bearing  of  religion  upon  them  ; 
this  Psalm  may  well  be  his.  It  suits  David's  position  at  several 
points  of  his  history,  perhaps  best  the  time  when  he  was  at  the 
court  of  Saul,  see  i  Sam.  xviii.  His  foes  are  active  ;  his  friends 
counsel  flight.  A  coward  or  a  merely  prudent  man  would  comply  ; 
a  brave  man  would  rally  his  powers  to  meet  the  danger;  a  saint 
holds  his  ground,  trusting  in  God. 

The  Psalm  falls  easily  into  two  parts:  verses  1-3,  the  danger; 
verses  4-7,  the  grounds  of  confidence.  But  the  Psalmist's  complete 
confidence  is  first  stated,  then  the  difficulties  in  its  way  are 
allowed  to  have  full  scope,  after  which  they  are  triumphantly 
surmounted. 

1.  Read,  '  In  Jehovah  have  I  taken  refuge.'  The  whole  issue 
is  here.  A  desertion  of  the  post  means  a  treachery  to  faith  and 
Him  in  whom  faith  reposes.  R.  V,  msrg.  '  Flee,  ye  birds,' 
addressed  to  David  and  his  companions.  David  speaks  of  being 
hunted  like  a  partridge  on  the  mountains  (i  Sam.  xxvi.  20),  and 
'  chasing  sore  like  a  bird  '  seems  to  have  been  proverbial  (Lam. 
iii.  52). 

2.  This  verse  and  the  next  form  part  of  the  address  of  timid 
friends.     The  description  of  the  machinations  of  wicked  foes  is  , 
intended  to  intimidate  and  shake  confidence. 

shoot  in  darkness  is  a  literal  rendering,  but  perhaps  '  unseen  * 
is  better  in  English.  Men  may  stab  in  the  dark,  but  not  shoot 
arrows. 

3.  Render,  '  When  the  foundations  are  being  destroyed,' 
Timid  counsellors  plead  further  that  there  is  no  safety  when  in 


8o  THE   PSALMS  11.  4-7 

What  can  the  righteous  do  ? 

4  The  Lord  is  in  his  holy  temple, 
The  Lord,  his  throne  is  in  heaven ; 

His  eyes  behold,  his  eyelids  try,  the  children  of  men. 

5  The  Lord  trieth  the  righteous : 

But  the  wicked  and  him  that  loveth  violence  his  soul 
hateth. 

6  Upon  the  wicked  he  shall  rain  snares ; 

Fire  and  brimstone  and  burning  wind  shall  be  the  portion 
of  their  cup. 

7  For  the  Lord  is  righteous ;  he  loveth  righteousness  : 
The  upright  shall  behold  his  face. 


the  state  the  very  authorities  are  arrayed  against  goodness,  or 
when  the  fundamental  principles  of  righteousness  are  disregarded. 
The  marginal  rendering,  '  What  hath  the  righteous  wrought  ? ' 
/leads  to  the  same  point  by  another  road — no  help  is  to  be  looked 
for,  therefore  flee  while  there  is  time. 

4.  Another  strain  begins  here.  Whether  the  persecuted  man 
,  flees  or  stands  his  ground  depends  on  where  his  eyes  are  fixed. 
/  The   Psalmist  looks  upwards.     Whilst   timid    counsellors   round 

him  see  danger  from  man,  he  sees  Jehovah  on  His  throne,  with 
'the  eyes  of  His  glory'  watching  all.  The  temple  here  is 
clearly  declared  to  be  heaven,  and  this  suggests  a  wider  use  of  the 
word  elsewhere. 

Ms  eyelids  try:  say  some  commentators,  because  the  eyelids 
contract  when  one  would  examine  an  object  closely.  More 
probably  *  eyelids  '  is  only  used  as  parallel  to  '  eyes ' ;  the  word 
'  try '  properly  refers  to  the  smelting  of  minerals. 

5.  Render,  'Jehovah  by  trial  approveth  the  righteous';  in 
P.B.V.,  '  alloweth,'  which  has  the  same  meaning.  God  tries  or 
proves  all,  but  approves  only  those  who  come  well  out  of  trial. 
Compare  the  double  rendering  possible  in  Phil,  i.  9,  *  discriminate 
things  that  differ/  and  '  approve  things  excellent.' 

6.  One  version  reads  '  coals  of  fire,'  instead  of  snares.  But 
the  Psalmist  is  not  afraid  of  mixed  metaphors  ;  see  below,  the 
portion  of  their  cup.  Whether  the  reference  in  fire  and  brim- 
stone and  bnrningf  wind  be  to  the  destruction  of  Sodom,  or  the 
eruption  of  a  volcano,  or  the  simoom  of  the  desert,  the  idea  is  that 
from  the  skies  comes  a  tempest  which  seizes  the  fugitive,  entangles 
his  footsteps,  and  then  suffocates  and  destroys  him. 

1^7.  A    foundation    is    laid    here    which   cannot    be   destroyed. 


THE   PSALMS  12.  i,  2  81 

For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  set  to  the  Sheminith,    A  Psalm  of  David.  12 

Help,  Lord  ;  for  the  godly  man  ceaseth ;  i 

For  the  faithful  fail  from  among  the  children  of  men. 
They  speak  vanity  every  one  with  his  neighbour :  2 

With  flattering  lip,  and  with  a  double  heart,  do  they  speak. 

Jehovah  is  righteous  in  Himself,  therefore  '  He  loveth  righteous 
deeds,'  as  R.  V.  marg.  has  it,  and  only  what  He  loves  can  ultim- 
ately stand.  In  the  last  clause  there  is  ambiguity.  A.  V.  has 
'  His  countenance  doth  behold  the  upright,'  i.  e.  God  sees,  approves, 
and  will  maintain  their  cause  :  R.  V.,  with  the  best  moderns.  The 
uprig-ht  shall  behold  his  face,  i.  e.  they  shall  be  admitted  to  His 
presence,  regarded  with  His  favour,  abide  in  His  home  and  share 
the  unspeakable  joy  of  the  Beatific  Vision.  The  latter  of  the  two 
renderings  is  undoubtedly  to  be  preferred  :  it  is  not  usual  to  say 
that  God's  face  beholds,  but  that  He  beholds,  and  there  need  be  no 
discrepancy  between  this  and  the  statement  that  none  can  see 
God's  face  and  live.  The  conditions  of  this  spiritual  vision  are 
left  all  undetermined  ;  like  some  other  brief  sayings  of  the  Psalm- 
ist, the  phrase  remains  in  its  simplicity,  splendidly  undefined. 

Psalm  XIL     Prayer  of  the  Faithful  among  the  Faithless. 

This  Psalm  also  was  written  in  a  time  of  persecution  to  express 
unshaken  confidence  in  God.  Some  writers  ascribe  it  to  David 
during  his  life  as  an  outlaw,  but  it  bears  marks  of  a  later  age. 
The  description  of  the  state  of  society  in  verses  i  and  2  finds  a 
much  more  apt  parallel  in  the  writings  of  the  prophets,  e.  g.  Hosea 
or  Jeremiah.  The  mention  of  the  flatterers  and  their  hypocrisy 
is  a  part  of  the  same  picture. 

The  Psalm  falls  into  two  equal  parts  :  verses  1-4,  the  prayer ; 
5-8,  the  answer.  For  the  musical  phrase  '  set  to  the  Sheminith,' 
see  Introd.  p.  15. 

1.  The  word  Help  or  '  Save '  is  a  comprehensive  one,  and  must 
be  understood  as  including  more  than  '  put  in  safety '  (verse  6). 
The  whole  Psalm  is  an  exposition  of  what  the  writer  desires. 

the  ^odly  man  ceaseth,  &c.  The  danger  arises  from  the 
failure  in  the  Psalmist's  time  of  two  virtues  very  apt  to  disappear 
in  an  artificial  state  of  society — kindliness  and  fidelity.  Compare 
the  picture  in  Isa.  i.  16,  17,  23.  What  is  needed  is  the  steadfast, 
God-fearing  character,  kindly  and  helpful  in  all  human  relations, 
but  staunch  as  only  religious  principle  can  make  a  man.  The  plea 
of  this  verse  is  that  such  men  are  no  longer  to  be  found. 

2.  On  the  other  hand,  unreality,  deception,  and  inconsistency, 
three  vices  closely  akin,  abound  everywhere.  The  man  with  a 
double  heart  is  the  opposite  of  one  with  '  a  single  eye.'     The 


82  THE   PSALMS  12.  3-8 

3  The  Lord  shall  cut  off  all  flattering  lips, 
The  tongue  that  speaketh  great  things : 

4  Who  have  said,  With  our  tongue  will  we  prevail ; 
Our  lips  are  our  own  :  who  is  lord  over  us  ? 

5  For  the  spoiling  of  the  poor,  for  the  sighing  of  the  needy, 
Now  will  I  arise,  saith  the  Lord  ; 

I  will  set  him  in  safety  at  whom  they  puff. 

6  The  words  of  the  Lord  are  pure  words ; 
As  silver  tried  in  a  furnace  on  the  earth, 
Purified  seven  times. 

7  Thou  shalt  keep  them,  O  Lord, 

Thou  shalt  preserve  them  from  this  generation  for  ever. 

8  The  wicked  walk  on  every  side, 

When  vileness  is  exalted  among  the  sons  of  men. 

antithesis  to  the  combined  falsehood  and  unkindness  of  these  men 
is  admirably  expressed  in  Paul's  phrase,  '  dealing  truly  in  love,' 
Eph.  iv.  15. 

3,  4.  The  punishment  which  these  flatterers  and  traitors  de- 
serve will  come— may  it  come  !  True,  their  self-confidence  is  com- 
plete. Their  clever  tongues,  they  think  and  say,  can  accomplish 
anything ;  but  God  is  not  deceived,  and  will  not  be  mocked,  in  His 
own  time  He  will  overthrow  their  devices. 

5.  Now  will  I  arise,  saith  tlie  ZiORD,  &c.  In  dramatic  fashion 
the  Psalmist  represents  God  as  speaking  and  preparing  to  act.  In 
the  last  line  render,  with  R.  V.  marg.,  '  I  will  set  him  in  the  safety 
for  which  he  pants.' 

6.  The  trustworthiness  of  the  Divine  word  is  joyfully  recalled  ; 
what  God  has  promised  He  will  perform.  The  brevity  of  the 
phrase  a  furnace  on  the  earth  makes  it  obscure.  The  reference 
is  to  the  molten  metal  flowing  down  from  the  furnace  to  the  ground. 

seven  times,  that  is,  completely. 

*7f  8.  Some  of  the  best  critics  would  transpose  these  two  verses. 
Certainly  the  last  verse  forms  an  anti-climax,  and  the  seventh 
would  bring  the  Psalm  to  a  triumphant  conclusion.  But  we  are 
not  at  liberty  to  re-arrange  the  Psalmist's  thoughts,  and  the  closing 
words  as  they  stand  bring  back  the  sad  picture  of  verse  i  which 
seems  to  be  darkening  the  writer's  vision. 

Still,  the  stress  of  the  thought  lies  on  verse  7,  God  knows  and 
will  preserve  His  own.  That  is  the  fundamental,  all-important 
fact,  though  when  vileness  is  exalted  among  the  sons  of  men, 


THE   PSALMS  13.  1-4  83 

For  the  Chief  Musician,     A  Psahii  of  David.  13 

How  long,  O  Lord,  wilt  thou  forget  me  for  ever  ?  i 

How  long  wilt  thou  hide  thy  face  from  me  ? 

How  long  shall  I  take  counsel  in  my  soul,  2 

Having  sorrow  in  my  heart  all  the  day? 

How  long  shall  mine  enemy  be  exalted  over  me  ?  ^i 

Consider  and  answer  me,  O  Lord  my  God  :  j 

Lighten  mine  eyes,  lest  I  sleep  the  s/eej>  of  death ; 

Lest  mine  enemy  say,  I  have  prevailed  against  him ;  4 

the  wicked  stalk  and  strut  to  and  fro,  and  the  world  is  upside- 
down.  We  need  not  think  that  the  Psalmist  has  lost  courage  at 
the  last  moment,  though,  as  Perowne  says,  'the  relapse  into  gloom 
at  the  close  is  unparalleled.'  His  faith  has  not  failed,  but  he  cries 
*  Help ! '    once  more  in  a  tone  which  he  is  assured  will  be  heard. 

Psalm  XHI.     Quo  usque  Domine  !  '  How  long,  O  Lord  ? ' 

This  Psalm  begins  in  as  low  a  key  as  the  last,  but  it  ends  in 
complete  joy  of  faith.  The  writer  is  apparently  afraid  of  one 
personal  enemy,  in  whom  is  concentrated  the  hostility  of  many. 
If  David  wrote  the  Psalm,  it  could  be  only  in  reference  to  Saul  ; 
but  in  all  probability  it  belongs  to  a  much  later  period,  and  the 
language  is  appropriate,  like  that  of  Pss.  x  and  xii,  to  the  condition 
of  the  pious  community  in  Israel  in  the  later  pre-Exilic  period. 

The  Psalm  was  a  favourite  with  Calvin,  and  inspired  the  even- 
ing hymn  of  Anatolius,  used  so  long  in  the  Eastern  Church  and 
popularized  by  many  translations.  It  contains  three  stanzas  which 
may  be  thus  summarized  :  verses  i  and  2,  trouble  ;  verses  3  and  4^ 
prayer  ;  verses  5  and  6,  relief. 

1.  There  is  no  real  contradiction  in  the  question,  'How  long 
wilt  thou  forget-for-ever?'  The  last  three  words  form  one  idea. 
Sorrow  makes  the  hours  drag,  and  the  Psalmist  asks  how  long  he 
is  to  be  utterly  God-forsaken,  as  if  lost  in  endless  oblivion.  The 
obvious  contradiction  in  the  mode  of  expression  is  eloquent  of 
his  state  of  mind.  Or  possibly  the  sufferer  recognizes  the  sugges- 
tion that  he  may  be  permanently  forgotten  as  a  temptation,  and 
appeals  to  God  to  drive  it  away. 

2.  Take  counsel  means  make  plans,  however  hopeless  :  as  a 
prisoner  spends  time  in  devising  impossible  methods  of  escape. 

3.  Render,  '  Behold  and  answer  .  .  .  lest  I  sleep  in  death.'  If 
God  looks  his  way,  his  eyes  will  be  '  lightened,'  i.  e.  he  will  re- 
ceive fresh  strength  and  courage.  Compare  the  case  of  Jonathan 
fatigued  and  faint,  i  Sam.  xiv.  27,  29. 

G    2 


84  THE    PSALMS  13.  5— H.  1 

Lest  mine  adversaries  rejoice  when  I  am  moved. 

5  But  I  have  trusted  in  thy  mercy ; 

My  heart  shall  rejoice  in  thy  salvation  : 

6  I  will  sing  unto  the  Lord, 

Because  he  hath  dealt  bountifully  with  me. 

14  For  the  Chief  Musician.     A  Psalm  of  David. 

I  The  fool  hath  said  in  his  heart,  There  is  no  God. 
They  are  corrupt,  they  have  done  abominable  works ; 

5,  6.  The  joy  of  faith.  Nothing  has  happened  to  change  the 
Psalmist's  tone,  except  that  'everything'  which  is  implied  in  the 
revelation  of  Divine  truth,  and  the  dawning  of  new  light  upon  the 
soul  within.  *  It  is  the  Lord  who  rises,  with  healing  in  His 
wings.'  The  storms  still  rage  outside,  but  David,  as  Luther 
says,  'sings  quietly  his  little  Psalm.' 

Psalm  XIV.     A  Sigh  over  a  Godless  World. 

To  what  period  and  conditions  of  life  does  this  Psalm  refer? 
Several  data  are  before  us  which  enable  us  to  give  an  approxi- 
mate answer  to  this  question,  (i)  It  describes  a  depraved  and 
corrupt  age.  Some  have  supposed  the  reference  in  verse  2  to  be 
to  primitive  times,  Gen.  vi,  xi,  &c.,  but  the  writer  is  adapting  the 
language  which  describes  an  earlier  generation  to  his  own.  (2) 
*  My  people '  in  verse  4  must  indicate  either  a  period  of  oppression 
of  Israel  by  a  foreign  power,  or  of  the  godly  within  the  nation  by 
evil  rulers,  or  both,  (3)  Verse  7  might  seem  to  imply  a  post- 
Exilic  date  :  but  {a)  the  phrase  *  turn  the  captivity '  may  be  used 
of  a  general  restoration  of  fortune,  see  note  ;  and  (6)  this  verse 
may  be  a  liturgical  addition.  (4)  The  Psalm  occurs  again  in  a 
later  collection  as  Ps.  liii,  with  some  slight  modifications,  the  name 
Yahweh  being  changed  to  Elohim,  together  with  other  changes 
discussed  in  their  place.  Ps.  liii  is  apparently  the  later  form, 
and  its  place  in  a  later  collection  implies  the  lapse  of  a  consider- 
able interval. 

We  come  to  the  conclusion,  then,  that  this  Psalm  was  written 
under  the  later  Monarchy  ;  perhaps  in  the  time  of  Jeremiah,  the 
condition  of  the  nation  at  the  time  presenting  several  parallel 
features.  But  it  may  have  been  somewhat  earlier,  say  in  the 
time  of  Manasseh. 

It  may  be  divided  thus :  verses  1-3,  description  of  prevailing 
corruption  ;  4-6,  God  is  mindful  of  His  own  ;  7,  concluding  prayer. 

1.  On    the   word   fool,   see  a   more   complete  study   in   the 


THE   PSALMS  14.  2,?,  85 

There  is  none  that  doeth  good. 

The  Lord  looked  down  from  heaven  upon  the  children  2 

of  men, 
To  see  if  there  were  any  that  did  understand, 
That  did  seek  after  God. 

They  are  all  gone  aside ;  they  are  together  become  filthy ;  3 
There  is  none  that  doeth  good,  no,  not  one. 


Introduction  to  Vol.  II.  We  may  remark  here,  however,  the 
moral  and  practical  character  of  Jewish  thought.  '  Wisdom  ' 
always  has  reference  to  character,  and  *  folly  '  is  never  far  removed 
from  wickedness.  An  intellectual  element  of  course  is  essential 
to  wisdom,  but  it  is  not  prominent  as  in  Hellenism. 

Here  the  '  fool '  is  not  a  speculative  atheist,  but  a  man  who  in 
practice  lives  as  if  there  were  no  God  that  judgeth  in  the  earth. 
Compare  Jer.v.  12,  *  Thiey  have  denied  the  Lord,  and  said,  It  is  not 
he  ;  neither  shall  evil  come  upon  us '  ;  Rom.  i.  28,  '  They  refused  to 
have  God  in  their  knowledge.' 

said  in  Ms  heart  means  '  persuaded  himself,'  so  that  this 
maxim  became  a  ruling  principle  of  action.  Here  is  sufficient 
proof  of  folly,  says  the  Psalmist  ;  it  is  further  shown  in  the 
corrupt  and  abominable  deeds  which  spring  from  depraved  and 
godless  hearts.  Both  the  earliest  and  latest  Scriptures  illustrate 
these  'abominations'  only  too  abundantly.  The  picture  of  the 
world  befa>re  the  Flood,  whencesoever  derived,  rivals  in  its  lurid 
colours  of  corruption  the  Rome  of  the  Apocalypse. 

2.  The  language  is  borrowed  from  Gen.  vi,  and  is  strongly 
anthropomorphic  in  charactei-.  God  is  represented  as  permitting 
man  to  go  on  in  his  own  ways,  but  from  time  to  time  intervening. 
He  looked  down  after  closing  or  averting  His  eyes  (the  word  is 
used  of  bending  forward  out  of  a  window  in  2  Kings  ix.  30),  or 
He  would  *  come  down '  after  comparative  inactivity.  As  in  the 
building  of  the  tower  of  Babel,  wickedness  is  suffered  to  ripen 
before  it  is  cut  off.  The  Titans  are  struck  down  when  Pelion 
piled  on  Ossa  approaches  the  gates  of  heaven. 

To  understand  or  '  deal  wisely '  is  impossible,  according  to  O.  T. 
teaching,  to  those  who  do  not  '  seek  God.'  Practical  mastery  of 
life  is  given  only  to  men  who  know  something,  and  desire  to  know 
more,  of  the  Divine  will. 

3.  They  are  all  g'one  aside,  &c.  :  a  sweeping  condemnation, 
expressing  in  intelligible  hyperbole  widespread  corruption.  The 
verses  are  quoted  in  Rom.  iii.  lo-ia.  Clauses  from  other  Psalms 
interwoven  by  Paul  in  verses  14-17  are  found  in  some  leading  MSS. 


86  THE    PSALMS  14.  4-6 

4  Have  all  the  workers  of  iniquity  no  knowledge  ? 
Who  eat  up  my  people  as  they  eat  bread, 

And  call  not  upon  the  Lord. 

5  There  were  they  in  great  fear : 

For  God  is  in  the  generation  of  the  righteous. 

6  Ye  put  to  shame  the  counsel  of  the  poor, 
Because  the  Lord  is  his  refuge. 

of  the  LXX  here.     They  have  made  their  way  into  the  P.  B.  V. 
through  the  Vulgate,  Coverdale  translating  from  the  Latin. 

In  Jer.  v.  i  the  diligent  search  of  the  prophet  discovers  none 
in  Jerusalem  who  are  doing  righteousness  or  seeking  truth;  so 
in  Zeph.  i.  12  God  is  represented  as  '  searching  Jerusalem  with 
candles  '  to  punish  the  practical  atheism  of  the  time.  The  word 
filthy  is  from  a  root  meaning  to  turn  sour,  hence,  become 
tainted,  putrid. 

4.  Supply  the  words,  '  God  speaketh.'  Are  these  offenders 
worse  than  ox  or  ass  (Isa.  i.  3%  and  have  they  not  sense  enough  to 
understand  the  folly  and  evil  of  their  ways  ?  Or,  as  some  versions 
have  it,  shall  they  not  be  made  to  know,  i.  e.  feel,  by  the  sharp 
punishment  which  will  overtake  them  ? 

my  people  may  mean  the  godly  few  in  Israel,  or  Israel  itself 
as  God's  people  under  the  hand  of  the  oppressor.  The  latter  is 
in  this  case  the  more  likely.  Eat  up  ...  as  they  eat  bread  ma\^ 
imply  more  than  a  metaphor,  Jer,  ii,  3  speaks  of  *  a  devouring 
of  Israel,*  and  verse  17  describes  the  invaders  'eating  up  the  har- 
vest which  thy  sons  and  daughters  should  eat.' 

5.  Render,  '  There  feared  they  with  great  fear.'  The  word 
'there'  is  emphatic;  the  Psalmist  vividly  realizes  a  spot  where 
a  blow  fell,  as  with  the  suddenness  of  lightning.  Some  refer  it 
to  the  Egyptians  at  the  Red  Sea.  surely  too  far-fetched  an  allusion. 
Baethgen  and  others  suppose  a  reference  to  an  unknown  event 
of  the  nature  of  a  judgement.  Perhaps  better,  God  is  represented 
as  looking  out  upon  the  evil-doing,  He  speaks  in  remonstrance, 
and  then  panic  must  seize  the  offenders,  'they  feared'  being 
a  prophetic  perfect.  For,  it  is  added,  God  is  in  the  greneration 
of  the  rig-hteous,  He  '  knows  their  way,'  He  cares  for  and  will 
vindicate  their  cause. 

6.  Render,  *  Ye  would  put  to  shame' — or  *  frustrate'— '  the 
counsel  of  the  afflicted.  Yea,  but  Jehovah  is  his  refuge,'  R ,  V.  marg. 
gives  substantially  the  same  meaning,  'Ye  did  put  to  shame  .  .  . 
but.'  The  'counsel'  of  the  oppressed  points  to  some  good  work 
they  had  undertaken,  as  e,  g,  the  building  of  the  walls  of  Jerusa- 
lem bj''  Nehemiah. 


THE   PSALMS  14.  7— 15.  2  87 

Oh  that  the  salvation  of  Israel  were  come  out  of  Zion  !  .    7 
When  the  Lord  bringeth  back  the  captivity  of  his  people, 
Then  shall  Jacob  rejoice,  and  Israel  shall  be  glad. 

A  Psalm  of  David.  15 

Lord,  who  shall  sojourn  in  thy  tabernacle  ?  i 

Who  shall  dwell  in  thy  holy  hill  ? 

He  that  walketh  uprightly,  and  worketh  righteousness,       2 
And  speaketh  truth  in  his  heart. 

7.  For  the  phrase  '  turn  the  captivity  '  in  its  general  use  see 
Job  xlii.  10,  where  it  means  '  restored  to  fortune '  ;  Zeph.  ii.  7, 
'  visit  and  bring  again  their  captivity  ' ;  in  Amos  ix.  14  and  Hos. 
vi.  II  it  is  used  of  the  earlier  captivity  of  Israel  under  Assyria. 

This  verse  may  be  a  liturgical  addition.  Such  a  practice  was 
common  ;  a  parallel  is  found  in  the  doxology  added  later  to  the 
Lord's  Prayer.  The  verse  as  it  stands  reads  somewhat  abrupt, 
but  it  may  have  stood  part  of  the  text  from  the  beginning. 

Psalm  XV.     The  Guests  in  God's  House. 

This  Psalm  has  been  called  by  Che3me  a  '  guest-Psalm,'  because 
in  common  with  others  it  deals  with  the  idea  of  fitness  to  dwell 
in  the  presence  of  God,  to  be  one  of  the  guests  admitted  to  His 
house  and  allowed  to  sojourn  in  His  holy  abode.  It  is  natural  to 
associate  it  with  Ps.  xxiv,  but  the  phrase  '  Who  shall  abide  ? '  is 
found  in  prophets  of  different  periods.  Note  especially  Isa.  xxxiii. 
14,  15,  the  writer  of  which  may  have  drawn  inspiration  from 
this  Psalm.  The  answer  here  given  to  the  question  is  distinctly 
ethical,  and  the  composition  is  simple  in  tone  and  structure. 
There  is  nothing  to  suggest  a  late  date,  unless  it  be  the  phrase 
'holy  hill,'  and  this  does  not  necessarily  imply  a  late  idea. 

The  question  is  propounded  in  verse  i  ;  the  answer  is  given  in 
2.-^  ;  the  conclusion  in  5<=. 

1.  The  words  '  tent '  and  '  mountain  '  may  refer  to  the  temporary 
structure  for  the  ark  on  Mount  Zion.  The  idea  of  '  God's  guest ' 
is  still  a  prevalent  one  in  the  East.  Robertson  Smith  refers  to  the 
very  phrase  in  Arabic,  jar-Allah^  as  given  to  one  who  dwells  in 
Mecca  by  the  holy  stone. 

2.  He  that  walketh,  &c.  This  answer  is  characteristic  of  the 
best  spirit  of  Judaism.  They  are  not  all  Israel  who  are  of  Israel  ; 
not  all  dwellers  in  Jerusalem,  not  all  priests  who  frequent  the 
holy  place,  are  true  guests  of  God.  Purity  of  heart  and  life  are 
alone  well-pleasing  in  His  sight. 

The  guest  receives  protection   as  well  as  hospitality,  in   this 


88  THE   PSALMS  15.  3-5 

3  He  that  slandereth  not  with  his  tongue, 
Nor  doeth  evil  to  his  friend, 

Nor  taketh  up  a  reproach  against  his  neighbour. 

4  In  whose  eyes  a  reprobate  is  despised ; 
But  he  honoureth  them  that  fear  the  Lord. 

He  that  sweareth  to  his  own  hurt,  and.changeth  not. 

5  He  that  putteth  not  out  his  money  to  usury, 
Nor  taketh  reward  against  the  innocent. 

He  that  doeth  these  things  shall  never  be  moved. 

case  Divine  protection.  Who  may  claim  it  ?  The  Psalmist  says, 
only  the  man  of  integrity,  who  is  true-hearted  as  well  as  veracious. 
The  '  inwardness '  of  the  N.  T.  is  not  entirely  unknown  in  the  Old. 

3.  Render,  '  He  that  hath  no  slander  upon  his  tongue/  and 
mark  a  change  of  tense  in  the  following  clauses,  indicating  state 
and  habit.  '  His  fellow'  is  perhaps  better  than  'his  friend  '  ;  it  is 
synonymous  with  neighbour,  and  does  not  imply  personal  friend- 
ship. The  'taking  up  reproach'  which  might  otherwise  lie 
harmless,  and  passing  it  on  to  others'  discredit,  is  too  common 
a  vice  in  all  times. 

4.  A  man's  estimate  of  others  forms  a  sure  criterion  of  his  own 
character.  The  reprobate  represents  the  worthless  dross  of 
society.  Such  persons  may  be  exalted,  xii.  8,  but  it  is  character- 
istic of  a  degenerate  age  that  they  should  make  their  way  to  the 
front.  The  true  man  will  estimate  them  at  their  true  value, 
whatever  their  rank  or  wealth.  To  venerate  only  the  venerable, 
to  regulate  worth  by  'the  fear  of  Jehovah' — what  a  revolution 
would  be  created  in  any  society  by  the  carrying  out  of  such 
principles  ! 

For  the  sacredness  of  a  promise  solemnly  made,  see  Lev.  v.  4. 
Perhaps  better  render,  '  Though  he  sweareth  to  his  own  hurt, 
he  changeth  not.' 

5.  Render,  *  Nor  taketh  a  bribe  against  the  innocent.*  Usur}' 
and  bribery  were  both  forbidden  by  the  law ;  see  Lev.  xxy.  36,  37 
and  Deut.  xxvii.  25.  A  change  in  the  conditions  of  society  has 
made  the  taking  of  interest  for  the  use  of  money  to  be  not  only 
harmless  but  beneficial,  or  even  necessary  to  civilization.  The 
principle,  however,  of  both  these  clauses  abides  unchangeable. 
It  is  always  wrong  to  take  unfair  advantage  of  another's  necessity, 
to  'grind  the  face'  of  the  poor,  or  to  employ  wealth  to  interfere 
with  the  course  of  justice.  The  last  line.  He  .  .  .  shall  never 
ba  moved,  forms  a  fitting  climax,  showing  the  perfect  tranquil- 
lity and  security  of  'a  guest  of  Jeliovah.' 


THE   PSALMS  16.  i,  2  89 

Michtam  of  David.  jq 

Preserve  me,  O  God  :  for  in  thee  do  I  put  my  trust.  r 

I  have  said  unto  the  Lord,  Thou  art  my  Lord :  2 

Psalm  XVI.     Life  in  God  here  and  hereafter. 

A  fine  expression  of  lofty  spiritual  experience.  Partly  because 
of  this  high  spiritual  tone,  partly  because  the  closing  verses  seem 
to  express  a  definite  hope  of  a  future  life,  many  modern  critics 
are  disposed  to  account  this  a  decidedly  late  Psalm,  even  amongst 
those  which  belong  to  the  post-Exilic  period.  It  has  been  said 
that  it  contains  distinct  traces  of  Persian  influence.  A  decision 
on  the  question  of  date  must  depend  upon  exegesis  and  upon 
the  view  taken  of  the  history  of  religious  thought  amongst  the 
Jews.  It  will  not,  however,  escape  notice  that  kindred  expressions 
to  those  found  towards  the  end  of  this  Psalm  are  found  also  at 
the  close  of  Pss.  xi  and  xvii. 

The  main  thought  unquestionably  is  that  in  Jehovah  Himself 
every  true  servant  of  His  will  find  his  highest  good.  The  idea 
itself  might  well  be  found  in  a  Psalm  of  David,  but  the  mode 
in  which  the  Psalmist  works  it  out  suggests  a  later  period.  The 
expressions  in  verses  9-1 1  do  not  necessarily  imply  the  expectation 
of  a  future  life.  Primarily  they  refer  to  that  '  portion  '  of  blessed- 
ness which  the  godly  man  enjoys  here  and  now  in  the  presence 
and  favour  of  Jehovah,  though  they  may  readily  be  understood 
as  a  venture  of  faith,  the  utterance  in  a  prophetic  spirit  of  a  belief 
not  shared  by  the  Psalmist's  contemporaries.  See  notes  on  those 
verses.  The  position  of  the  Psalm  thus  early  in  the  first  collec- 
tion may  be  explained  if  a  post-Exilic  date  for  its  composition  be 
accepted. 

The  Psalm  contains  three  parts  :  the  happiness  of  the  service 
of  God  in  its  external  relations,  verses  1-4  ;  its  interior  blessed- 
ness, 5-8;  glad  and  confident  expectation  of  the  future,  9-11. 
For  the  word  '  Michtam,'  sometimes  understood  to  mean  '  epigram- 
matic' in  style,  sometimes  'golden'  in  quality,  but  probably  a 
musical  title,  see  Introd,  p.  16. 

1.  Render,  'In  thee  have  I  taken  refuge,' and  therefore  to  Thee 
do  I  look  for  the  safeguarding  I  need. 

2.  The  translation  of  R.  V.,  I  have  said,  follows  the  Versions 
LXX,  Vulg.,  Syr.,  Jer.    'Thou '  {fern.)  in  A.  V.  refers  to  the  soul. 

The  latter  half  of  the  verse  has  been  variously  rendered. 
P.  B.V.  reads,  'My  goods  are  nothing  unto  thee,'  and  other 
similar  translations  suggest  that  man  has  no  merit  Godwards. 
Thus  Tennyson  writes, 

*  For  merit  lives  from  man  to  man, 
And  not  from  man,  O  Lord,  to  Thee; 


90  THE   PSALMS  16.  3-5 

I  have  no  good  beyond  thee. 

3  As  for  the  saints  that  are  in  the  earth, 

They  are  the  excellent  in  whom  is  all  my  delight. 

4  Their  sorrows  shall  be  multiplied  that  exchange  the  Lord 

for  another  god\ 
Their  drink  offerings  of  blood  will  I  not  offer, 
Nor  take  their  names  upon  my  lips. 

5  The  Lord  is  the  portion  of  mine  inheritance  and  of  my 

cup : 
Thou  maintainest  my  lot. 


But  the  meaning  unquestionably  is,  as  in  R.  V.,  I  have  no  good 
beyond  thee,  and  this  forms  the  dominant  thought  of  the  Psalm. 

3.  The  language  is  brief  and  obscure;  possibly  the  text  is 
corrupt,  and  many  emendations  have  been  suggested.  Following 
R.  V.  the  meaning  is  :  the  holy  ones  in  the  land  are  those  whom 
I  regard  as  true  nobles  or  princes,  and  in  their  society  I  find 
delight.  Others  join  with  verse  4,  'To  the  saints  I  have  said,'  &c. 
One  conjectural  emendation  is, '  To  the  saints  which  are  in  his  land 
Jehovah  shows  honour' — a  smooth  and  tame  reading  which  sound 
textual  criticism  would  at  once  reject  as  too  easy  to  have  given 
rise  to  the  existing  obscurity.  For  the  word  saints,  see  detached 
note,  p.  361. 

4.  Idolatry  is  more  or  less  ripe,  and  is  said  to  be  marked  by 
'  libations  of  blood  '■ — a  phrase  which  may  either  be  understood 
literally,  or  better,  metaphorically,  of  sacrifices  blood-stained, 
impure,  and  unacceptable.  The  prevalence  of  idolatry  does  not 
favour  a  post-Exilic  date.   • 

The  use  of  names  is  significant.  The  name  had  a  power  of 
its  own  in  Semitic  worship  :  the  Psalmist  refuses  to  utter  the 
names  of  false  gods,  and  Zechariah  says  '  the  names  of  the  idols 
shall  be  cut  off  out  of  the  land'  (xiii.  2).  Compare  the  watch- 
words '  Jesus  is  Lord  ! '  and  '  Jesus  is  accursed! '  in  i  Cor.  xii.  3  ; 
the  distinction  between  Christian  and  unbeliever  depended  upon 
the  use  made  of  the  name  Jesus. 

5.  6.  Two  figures  are  employed  here.  One  refers  to  the 
allotment  of  land  in  the  sacred  territory  of  Canaan  ;  the  Levites 
are  said  to  have  had  no  separate  portion,  because  God  was  their 
portion,  Num.  xviii.  20,  The  other  is  more  briefly  touched,  the 
cup  of  blessing  in  the  Psalmist's  hand  is  filled  with  happiness 
because  he  enjoys  God's  favour. 

The  phrase  Thou  maintainest  is  anomalous.     If  this  meaning 


THE   PSALMS  16.  6-10  91 

The  lines  are  fallen  unto  me  in  pleasant  places ; 

Yea,  I  have  a  goodly  heritage. 

I  will  bless  the  Lord,  who  hath  given  me  counsel : 

Yea,  my  reins  instruct  me  in  the  night  seasons. 

I  have  set  the  Lord  always  before  me : 

Because  he  is  at  my  right  hand,  I  shall  not  be  moved. 

Therefore  my  heart  is  glad,  and  my  glory  rejoiceth : 

My  flesh  also  shall  dwell  in  safety. 

For  thou  wilt  not  leave  my  soul  to  Sheol ; 

Neither  wilt  thou  suffer  thine  holy  one  to  see  corruption. 

be  kept,  it  implies  *  Thou  keepest  safe  as  a  peculiar  car'e ' ;  but 
Delitzsch  renders  'Thou  makest  broad'  or  'spacious,'  and  Cheyne 
'  Thou  wilt  continually  be  my  lot.'  The  lines  are  the  measuring- 
lines  for  determining  the  allotment,  put  for  the  portion  itself. 
See  a  similar  usage  in  Joshua  xvii.  5  and  in  the  Greek  of  2  Cor. 
X.  13. 

*7,  8.  Render,  'Yea,  mine  own  reins  instruct  me.'  The  reins 
are  the  organs  of  emotion,  and  in  the  quiet  hours  of  the  night 
conscience  often  speaks.  The  word  instract  implies  a  combinatioii 
of  admonition  and  stimulus. 

Jehovah  may  be  conceived  of  as  before  the  Psalmist,  then  he 
will  walk  after  Him,  in  His  ways  ;  or  at  his  right  hand,  then  he 
will  walk  with  God,  like  Enoch.  Either  way  he  is  secure  antj 
strong — I  shall  not  "be  moved.  '  '^'_  [ 

9-11.  This  closing  strophe,  says  Delitzsch,  'consists  of  seven 
raj'S  of  light '  ;  all  the  parts  of  man's  being  are  lighted  up  b}'  the 
presence  of  God.  Heart,  flesh  and  soul  (glory)  are  all  named  in 
verse  9.  The  phrase  dwell  in  safety  was  a  customary  one  to 
describe  Israel  as  abiding  under  the  protection  of  God,  and  does 
not  in  itself  necessitate  any  reference  to  a  future  life.  The 
rendering  'dwell  in  hope'  is  from  the  LXX,  and  is  not  justified 
by  the  Hebrew. 

10.  thou  wilt  not  leave  my  soul  to  Sheol  can  hardly  be 
understood  as  meaning,  'wilt  bring  me  out  of  the  underworld 
after  I  have  passed  within  its  grasp.*  It  is  parallel  with  '  dwell 
in  safety,'  and  'not  suffer  to  see'  Shachoth,  or  'the  pit':  i.e. 
'Thou  wilt  preserve  me  from  the  grave,  which  as  a  monster  is 
ready  to  devour.'  The  K'thibh  in  the  Hebrew  has  'holy  ones,' 
but  this  is  almost  certainly'  an  error.  R.  V.  follows  the  Q'ri,  holy 
one,  which  should  not  be  spelt '  Holy  One '  (A.  V.\  as  if  it  referred 
to  Christ,  but  must  be  understood  as  s3'nonymous  with   '  godly ' 


92  THE    PSALMS  IG.  n 

1 1  Thou  wilt  shew  me  the  path  of  life : 
In  thy  presence  is  fulness  of  joy ; 
In  thy  right  hand  there  are  pleasures  for  evermore. 

or  '  beloved '  (R.  V.  marg.),  one  united  to  God  by  the  bond  of 
covenant-love.     See  detached  note  on  Chasid,  p.  360. 

11.  This  verse  confirms  the  general  ideas  suggested  by  the  last. 
It  does  not,  any  more  than  verse  10,  make  any  definite  reference 
to  a  life  of  future  blessedness,  but  it  emphasizes  the  fact  that  real 
life  is  to  be  found  in  the  presence  and  service  of  God.  '  Thou  wilt 
make  me  to  know  the  path  of  life  '  refers  to  the  way  which  the 
servant  of  God  is  to  tread  here  and  now  ;  when  the  Psalmist 
speaks  of  thy  presence  he  is  not  thinking  of  a  distant  heaven. 
In  the  last  line  he  says  not  'at  thy  right  hand'  (A.  V.) — a  trans- 
lation in  which  a  whole  fallacy  lurks — but,  in  thy  right  hand  are 
the  joys  that  cannot  die.  If  we  rightly  interpret  these  profound 
words,  the  question  of  existence  in  Sheol  or  beyond  Sheol  was 
not  before  the  mind  of  the  Psalmist  at  all.  A  great  spiritual  truth 
is  expressed  in  noble  words — no  more  and  no  less. 

Perowne  says,  'In  this  Psalm,  and  in  the  next,  there  shines  forth 
the  bright  hope  of  everlasting  life.  .  .  .  The  argument  which  our 
Lord  used  with  the  Sadducees  applies  here  with  special  force.' 
Precisely,  but  only  as  our  Lord  used  it.  The  words  '  God  of 
Abraham '  do  not  of  themselves  declare  a  doctrine  of  future 
blessedness,  but  they  contain  implicitly  what  a  fuller  spiritual 
insight  makes  explicit.  He  who  firmly  holds  the  words  of  this 
Psalm  to  be  true  will  find  in  them  the  germ  of  immortality.  The 
Psalm  is  quoted  by  Peter  in  Acts  ii.  25,  and  by  Paul  in  Acts  xiii. 
35.  On  the  whole  subject  of  the  Messianic  use  of  the  Psalms 
and  the  Jewish  Hope  of  a  Future  Life,  see  Introduction  to 
vol.  ii.  The  bearing  of  the  general  considerations  there 
adduced  upon  the  interpretation  of  the  Psalm  before  us  is 
this.  The  writer's  theme  is  the  blessedness  and  security  of 
life  in  God  for  himself  and  all  who  trust  and  serve  God.  The 
safety  and  joy  of  that  life  has  no  bounds,  and  the  description 
of  it  given  in  the  closing  verses,  while  containing  no  explicit 
reference  to  a  future  life,  may  appropriately  be  used  with  deeper 
significance  by  those  for  whom  Christ  has  *  brought  life  and 
immortality  to  light  through  the  Gospel.'  So  in  the  original  words 
there  is  no  explicit  reference  to  a  coming  Messiah  and  his 
resurrection  ;  but  when  he  had  come  and  was  risen  from  the 
dead,  the  inspired  apostles  showed  how  not  in  David,  nor  in  any 
psalmist  or  prophet,  did  this  passage  find  its  complete  illustration 
and  fulfilment.  And  as  Christ  drew  the  doctrine  of  immortality 
from  the  phrase  *  God  of  Abraham,  of  Isaac  and  of  Jacob,'  so 
Peter  finds  the  doctrine  of  the  Resurrection  in  the  words  of  •  the 


THE   PSALMS  17.  1-3  93 

A  Prayer  of  David.  17 

Hear  the  right,  O  Lord,  attend  unto  my  cry ;  i 

Give  ear  unto  my  prayer,  that  goeth  not  out  of  feigned  hps. 
Let  my  sentence  come  forth  from  thy  presence  \  2 

Let  thine  eyes  look  upon  equity. 

Thou  hast  proved  mine  heart ;  thou  hast  visited  me  in  the   3 
.     night ;  

patriarch  David,'  who  died,  and  v^^as  buried,  and  did  not  fully 
realize  himself  how  God  would  not  '  leave  His  Holy  One  to  see 
corruption.'  Inspired  and  living  words,  like  those  of  the  Psalmist, 
have  ever  their  own  '  springing  and  germinant  accomplishments.' 

Psalm  XVII.     Refuge  in  God  from  the  Paths  of  the 
Destroyer. 

The  conditions  under  which  this  Psalm  was  written  correspond 
in  several  particulars  with  those  of  David  under  Saul's  persecution. 
It  presents  points  of  similarity  with  Pss.  vii  and  xi,  and  several 
critics  assign  all  three  to  David.  On  the  other  hand,  there  is 
nothing  specific  in  the  phraseology  which  would  prevent  our 
ascribing  it  to  a  persecuted  saint  during  or  after  the  Exile,  and  the 
tendency  of  recent  criticism  runs  in  that  direction.  Distinct 
historical  or  objective  references  such  as  would  settle  the  question 
of  date  are  lacking  here,  as  in  other  Psalms,  hence  the  judgement 
of  critics  is  usually  determined  by  their  views  as  to  the  general 
history  of  religion  in  Israel.  The  present  tendency  is  to  consider 
the  religious  experience  here  described  as  too  mature  for  the 
Davidic  period — a  position  which  has  not  yet  been  proved. 

The  Psalm  is  a  plea  to  God  for  the  vindication  of  the  writer's 
cause.  The  lines  of  demarcation  of  thought  are  not  very  clear, 
but  the  appeal  takes  on  fresh  urgency  at  verses  6  and  13,  and  the 
whole  prayer  may  be  divided  into  three  parts :  the  first,  a  plea 
based  on  the  Psalmist's  conscious  integrity,  1-5  ;  the  second,  an 
appeal  against  the  virulence  of  his  foes,  6-12  ;  the  third  presses 
the  broad  contrast  between  the  two,  13-15. 

1.  A  piercing  cry,  such  as  the  Eastern  does  not  hesitate  to 
utter,  in  expressing  joy  or  sorrow.  There  is  a  poignancy  about 
the  subject-matter  of  some  of  the  petitions  which  fully  justifies  the 
strong  word  used. 

2.  The  Psalmist  asks  only  for  justice  :  *  Thine  eyes  behold  with 
equity  '  (marg.)  ;  declare  the  right,  O  Lord,  and  all  will  be  well. 

3.  The  self-justification  of  a  man  with  a  clear  conscience. 
These  assertions  of  integrity  are  comparative  only,  but  real  and 
true  as  far  as  they  go. 

The  night  is  the  time  for  (i)  wandering  imaginations,  to  which 


94  THE   PSALMS  17.  4-8 

Thou  hast  tried  me,  and  findest  nothing ; 

I  am  purposed  that  my  mouth  shall  not  transgress. 

4  As  for  the  works  of  men,  by  the  word  of  thy  lips 
I  have  kept  me  from  the  ways  of  the  violent. 

5  My  steps  have  held  fast  to  thy  paths, 
My  feet  have  not  slipped. 

6  I  have  called  upon  thee,  for  thou  wilt  answer  me,  O  God  : 
Incline  thine  ear  unto  me,  and  hear  my  speech. 

7  Shew  thy  marvellous  lovingkindness,  O  thou  that  savest 

them  which  put  their  trust  in  thee 
From  those  that  rise  up  against  them,  by  thy  right  hand. 
s  Keep  me  as  the  apple  of  the  eye, 
Hide  me  under  the  shadow  of  thy  wings, 

the  Psalmist  has  not  yielded  ;  (2)  good  resolves,  which  he  has 
made  ;  hence  also  for  (3")  spiritual  testing,  through  which  he 
has  successfully  passed.  Another  rendering  is,  *  Thou  findest  no 
evil  purpose ;  my  mouth  shall  not  transgress.'  So  Hupfeld, 
Perowne,  and  Kirkpatrick.  Delitzsch  reads,  *  Thou  findestnothing. 
If  I  think  evil,  it  shall  not  pass  my  mouth.'  The  former  of  these 
two  translations,  substantially  adopted  in  R.  V.  marg.,  is  probably 
the  best. 

4.  The  language  of  this  verse  suits  a  person  better  than  a 
community,  and  the  Davidic  rather  than  the  post-Exilic  period. 

"by  the  word  of  thy  lips  might  be  illustrated  from  our  Lord's 
use  of  the  written  word  to  repel  the  assaults  of  the  tenipter  in  the 
wilderness. 

5.  A  further  assertion  of  innocence,  not  a  prayer  as  in  A.  V., 
'  Hold  up  my  goings,'  &c. 

The  paths  or  'tracks'  are  the  definite  duties  marked  out  by  the 
God  of  righteousness. 

6.  I  have  called  means,  I  am  now  calling,  and  claim  a  hearing 
on  the  grounds  enumerated. 

7.  On  the  word  marvellous  see  above  on  ix.  i.  It  implies 
special  intervention.  Render,  with  R.  V.  marg.,  '  From  those  that 
rise  up  against  thy  right  hand.'  This  is  simpler  than  R.V.,  it 
makes  better  sense,  and  is  supported  by  several  versions.  On  the 
other  hand,  it  is  alleged  that  there  is  no  parallel  in  the  O.  T.  to 
this  mode  of  expression,  but  this  is  not  a  very  serious  objection. 

8.  The  two  beautiful  and  apposite  figures  of  this  verse  have 
been  made  familiar  by  O.  T.  usage.  The  '  pupil '  of  the  eye, 
called  in  Hebrew  *  little  son,'  or  sometimes  *  daughter  of  the  eye,' 


THE   PSALMS  17.  9-14  95 

From  the  wicked  that  spoil  me,  9 

My  deadly  enemies^  that  compass  me  about. 

They  are  inclosed  in  their  own  fat :  10 

With  their  mouth  they  speak  proudly. 

They  have  now  compassed  us  in  our  steps :  11 

They  set  their  eyes  to  cast  us  down  to  the  earth. 

He  is  Hke  a  lion  that  is  greedy  of  his  prey,  1 2 

And  as  it  were  a  young  lion  lurking  in  secret  places. 

Arise,  O  Lord,  13 

Confront  him,  cast  him  down  : 

Deliver  my  soul  from  the  wicked  by  thy  sword; 

From  men,  by  thy  hand,  0  Lord,  14 

From  men  of  the  world,  whose  portion  is  in  this  life, 

And  whose  belly  thou  fillest  with  thy  treasure  : 

They  are  satisfied  with  children. 

And  leave  the  rest  of  their  substance  to  their  babes. 


once  the  '  door  of  the  eye/  Zech.  ii.  8,  is  the  centre  of  the  organ 
of  vision,  and  hence  is  specially  precious  and  specially  protected 
by  Nature,  The  figure  is  used  to  describe  the  Divine  care  in 
Deut.  xxxii.  10. 

The  metaphor  of  the  bird  with  sheltering  pinions  is  frequently 
employed  elsewhere  ;  see  Pss.  xxxvi.  7  and  xci.  4.  It  is  familiar 
through  Christ's  allusion  to  the  hen  with  her  brood  ;  the  reference 
*^o  the  eagle  in  Deut.  xxxii.  11  is  somewhat  different. 

9.  The  phraseology  of  this  verse  as  well  as  that  of  verse  4  is 
urged  as  suitable  to  David's  circumstances  by  those  who  accept  his 
authorship,  but  there  is  nothing  particularly  distinctive  in  it, 

10-12.  Moral  obtuseness  is  described  by  the  figure  of  the 
eyes  standing  out  with  fat,  or  the  heart  being  enclosed  by  fat, 
see  Ps.  Ixxiii.  7.  Many  have  beset  the  Psalmist's  steps  with  greedy 
eagerness  ;  one,  however,  being  prominent  in  pursuit,  is  described 
as  a  lion,  which,  when  confronted  by  superior  strength  or  courage, 
may  be  compelled  to  crouch  and  retire. 

13,  14.  A,  V,  and  R,  V.  marg.  read,  '  Men  which  are  thy  hand.' 
It  is  true  that  the  wicked  are  sometimes  described  as  the  sword 
of  God  ;  compare  Isa.  x,  5,  '  Ho  Assyrian,  the  rod  of  mine  anger  ! ' 
But  here  such  a  thought  is  alien  to  the  context,  and  mars  the 
simplicity  of  the  sentence. 

The  wicked  have  their  reward,  says  the  Psalmist.     In  the  last 


96  THE  PSALMS  17.  15— 18.  r 

15  As  for  me,  I  shall  behold  thy  face  in  righteousness : 
I  shall  be  satisfied,  when  I  awake,  with  thy  likeness. 

18  For  the  Chief  Musician.  A  Psalm  of  David  the  servant  of  the 
Lord,  who  spake  unto  the  Lord  the  vvrords  of  this  song  in  the 
day  that  the  Lord  deUvered  him  from  the  hand  of  all  his  enemies, 
and  from  the  hand  of  Saul  :  and  he  said, 

I  I  love  thee,  O  Lord,  my  strength. 

two  lines  render,  'They  are  satisfied  with  sons,  and  leave  their 
substance  to  their  children.'  Abundance  of  offspring  is  always  a 
mark  of  prosperity  in  the  East.     See  Job  xxi,  8,  i  r  ;  Ps.  cxxvii.  3-5. 

15.  The  Psalmist  is  content  to  wait  for  his  full  reward,  and  it  is 
of  the  most  spiritual  kind.  The  clauses  of  this  verse  may  be  un- 
derstood either  as  confident  hopes,  Z  shall  behold,  or  as  prayers, 
'  May  I  behold  ! '  The  latter  is  perhaps  better.  The  prayer  of 
Moses  in  Exod.  xxxiii.  20  is  repeated,  '  1  beseech  thee,  shew  me 
thy  glory,'  with  expectation  of  a  yet  more  complete  answer. 

May  I  he  satisfied  .  .  .  with  thy  likeness,  more  literally,  thy 
'form'  (R.  V.  marg.),  as  in  Num.  xii.  8,  'the  form  of  Jehovah 
shall  he  behold.' 

But  what  is  meant  by  when  I  awake  ?  Commentators  suggest : 
(i)  each  morning  after  the  night's  sleep  ;  (2)  after  the  night  of 
sorrow,  or  doubt,  or  anxiety  ;  (3")  in  a  future  life.  Of  the  above 
renderings,  (i)  is  tame  and  prosaic,  and  if  (3)  had  been  intended 
we  should  expect  the  language  to  have  been  more  explicit.  On 
the  whole,  (2)  appears  to  be  best  supported  by  the  parallels  in 
Pss.  XXX.  5,  cxxxix.  18,  cxliii.  lo,  and  by  the  paraphrase  of  the  LXX 
and  Targum,  '  When  thy  glory  appears.'  The  words  may  then  be 
left  without  closer  definition  in  their  suggestive  simplicity'.  The 
prayer  may  be  unquestionably  fulfilled  in  the  present  life,  as  God 
grants  ever  clearer  manifestations  of  Himself,  and  scatters  from 
time  to  time  the  heavy  gloom  or  the  vain  and  foolish  dreams  of 
the  Psalmist's  night.  But  it  is  impossible  for  those  who  read  the 
words  in  the  light  of  fuller  revelation  to  shut  out  the  thought  that 
after  the  night  of  death  the  believer  will  awake  to  the  full  vision 
of  God  in  the  heavenly  morn.  Only  the  Psalmist  does  not  say 
this,  he  expresses  a  hope  which  contains  this  wonderful  blossom 
in  germ  only.  'Here,'  says  Delitzsch,  'we  see  into  the  very 
heart  of  the  O.T.  faith.'  But  faith  it  remains,  all  the  more 
wonderful  that  it  had  so  little  food  on  which  to  nourish  its 
strength,  so  little  light  to  guide  it  on  its  way. 

Psalm  XVIII.     A  Royal  Thanksgiving. 
If  there  are  any  Davidic  Psalms  in  the  Psalter,  this  is  one.    The 
language  of  verse  50  does  not  prove  that  the  writer  claims  to  be 


THE  PSALMS    18.  2  97 

The  Lord  is  my  rock,  and  my  fortress,  and  my  deliverer ;  2 
My  God,  my  strong  rock,  in  him  will  I  trust ; 

David,  nor  does  it  make  it  certain  that  another  than  David  was  the 
writer;  though  both  these  positions  have  been  taken.  But  (i)  it 
is  directly  attributed  to  David  not  only  in  the  title,  but  in  2  Sam. 
xxii  ;  (2)  there  is  nothing  in  the  subject-matter  directly  incon- 
sistent with  such  authorship  ;  (3)  the  language  describing  the 
theophany  is  distinctly  early  in  character,  unless  a  later  writer 
has  deliberately  set  himself  to  imitate  an  earlier  style ;  and  (4) 
it  is  very  difficult  to  find  another  suitable  period  for  its  composition. 
The  only  tenable  alternative  to  Davidic  authorship  is  that  the 
Psalm  was  composed  by  a  later  poet  who  wove  the  incidents  of 
David's  life  into  just  such  a  song  of  thanksgiving  as  he  might  have 
written  ;  and  against  this  is  to  be  set  the  vigour,  earnestness,  and 
intensely  personal  character  of  the  language  used.  Even  the  more 
extreme  opponents  of  early  Psalms  are  disposed  to  make  an 
-exception  in  this  case,  though  some  would  admit  only  a  kind 
of  Davidic  basis  for  a  later  and  more  elaborate  composition. 

The  strongest  argument  on  the  other  side  is  the  assumed  im- 
possibility of  the  early  appearance  of  a  Psalm  embodying  such 
spiritual  truth  and  experience.  Prof.  Cheyne,  who  in  an  earlier 
volume  inclined  to  date  the  Psalm  as  pre-Hezekian,  some  time  ago 
withdrew  even  this  measure  of  concession.  He  smiles  at  the  idea 
that  a  *  versatile  coridotiiere,  chieftain  and  king  '  should  have  been 
a  prophet  in  his  old  age ;  and  puts  forward  a  theory  of  two  Davids, 
the  one  a  '  hero  of  the  transition  from  rudeness  to  culture,'  the 
other — ideal  only— a  representative  of  spiritual  religion. 

As  was  stated  in  the  Introd.,  p.  24,  we  have  not  the  data  for 
arriving  at  any  absolute  certainty  in  this  matter,  and  it  is  therefore 
only  possible  to  balance  probabilities.  As  regards  external  evidence, 
we  have  the  testimony  of  2  Samuel,  which  contains  one  admittedly 
Davidic  composition  in  the  first  chapter.  This  is,  however,  not 
a  religious  poem,  and  ch.  xxii  is  not  an  integral  part  of  the  original 
narrative.  The  title  in  the  Psalm  appears  to  have  been  taken  from 
the  history,  not  vice  versa ;  but  the  relation  between  the  texts  is  very 
difficult  to  determine.  It  is  supposed  by  the  best  critics  that  they 
are  independent  of  one  another,  while  that  of  the  Psalter  is  on  the 
whole  the  better  of  the  two,  as  probably  having  been  revised  later. 
It  is  difficult  to  extract  any  trustworthy  evidence  as  to  date  from 
the  textual  discussion.  The  general  tone  of  the  former  part  of  the 
Psalm  is  early,  whilst  it  is  undeniable  that  the  same  cannot  be  said 
of  verse  22,  with  its  mention  of  *  judgements'  and  'statutes,'  or 
*  the  afflicted  people  ^  in  verse  27,  whilst  it  is  contended  that  the 
writer  must  have  been  famihar  with  Deuteronomj'.  The  alleged 
parallels  are,  however,  capable  of  another  explanation. 


98  THE    PSALMS  18.  3,4 

My  shield,  and  the  horn  of  my  salvation,  my  high  tower. 

3  I  will  call  upon  the  Lord,  who  is  worthy  to  be  praised : 
So  shall  I  be  saved  from  mine  enemies. 

4  The  cords  of  death  compassed  me, 

And  the  floods  of  ungodliness  made  me  afraid. 

Probabilities  point  therefore  on  the  whole  to  the  Davidic  author- 
ship of  this  Psalm,  with  the  possibility  that  an  early  composition 
of  his  was  edited  later  and  prepared  for  use  in  public  worship.  The 
period  in  David's  life  at  which  it  was  written  is  indicated  in  the 
title.  Not  in  his  youth,  when  he  was  struggling  with  foes  for 
supremacy  or  for  very  existence ;  nor  in  the  period  which  was 
overshadowed  by  his  sin  ;  nor  when  he  was  compassed  by  the 
infirmities  of  age.  At  the  time  when  his  victories  had  been  won, 
when  he  was  anxious  to  build  a  house  for  God  and  gracious 
promises  had  been  given  him  through  Nathan  that  *  the  Lord  would 
build  him  an  house,'  as  recorded  in  2  Sam.  vii,  David  may  well 
have  poured  out  his  soul  in  the  triumphant  thanksgiving  of  this 
fflorious  Psalm. 

It  may  be  thus  subdivided  :  introduction,  verses  1-3 ;  description 
of  deliverance,  4-19  ;  the  grounds  of  David's  fidelity  and  devotion, 
20-30  ;  an  outburst  of  praise  in  celebration  of  his  triumph,  31-45  ; 
conclusion,  46-50. 

1.  Render,  '  Fervently  do  I  love  thee,  Jehovah,  my  strength.' 
A  special  word  is  used  here  for  'love,'  and  a  special  form  of  it, 
indicating  close  and  tender  affection.  This  preluding  invocation 
has  been  said  to  *  touch  the  high-water  mark  of  O.  T.  devotion,* 
and  to  form  '  one  of  its  noblest  utterances.'     (Maclaren.) 

2.  Various  figures  are  used  to  set  forth  God  as  a  helper.  They 
may  be  arranged  in  three  pairs,  (i)  A  *  cliff"'  or  cleft  rock, 
Sela\  and  a  rock,  hard  and  huge,  Tsur ;  (2)  a  *  stronghold '  or  en- 
trenchment, Matsur ;  and  a  Txigti  tower,  or  retreat  at  a  precipi- 
tous height,  Mtsgab  ;  (3)  a  horn,  Keren,  and  a  '  buckler,'  Magen. 
Translate  the  second  line,  'My  strong  rock,  wherein  I  take  refuge.' 
It  will  be  noticed  that  most  of  these  words  refer  to  defence  rather 
than  aggression,  and  many  of  them  are  just  such  as  would  be  sug- 
gested to  David  by  his  wanderings,  e.g.in  the  wilderness  of  En-gedi. 

3.  Rather,  '  I  call,  and  so  am  saved,'  i.  e.  whenever  I  call,  God 
hears  and  answers.  The  tense  indicates  habit,  not  futurity  ;  or  if 
an  element  of  futurity  be  admitted,  the  Psalmist's  confidence  is 
better  expressed  by  the  use  of  the  frequentative. 

4-6  contains  a  highly  figurative  and  impressive  description  of 
David's  need.  Both  this  and  the  account  of  God's  appearance  to 
deliver  him  are  conceived  in  the  characteristic  forms  of  Hebrew 
poetry,  and  the  phraseology  is  nowhere  to  be  literally  pressed. 


THE   PSALMS  18.  5-9  99 

The  cords  of  Sheol  were  round  about  me : 

The  snares  of  death  came  upon  me. 

In  my  distress  I  called  upon  the  Lx)RD,  i 

And  cried  unto  my  God : 

He  heard  my  voice  out  of  his  temple, 

And  my  cry  before  him  came  into  his  ears. 

Then  the  earth  shook  and  trembled, 

The  foundations  also  of  the  mountains  moved 

And  were  shaken,  because  he  was  wroth. 

There  went  up  a  smoke  out  of  his  nostrils, 

And  fire  out  of  his  mouth  devoured ; 

Coals  were  kindled  by  it. 

He  bowed  the  heavens  also,  and  came  down ;  ' 

The  fundamental  idea  of  sore  need  and  wonderful  deliverance 
is  to  be  expressed,  and  the  Psalmist  '  generalizes  it  in  a  majestic 
picture.'     (Delitzsch.) 

4.  Render, '  The  waves  of  death . . .  and  the  floods  of  destruction.' 
^Waves'  is  found  in  2  Samuel,  'cords'  in  verse  5  and  cxvi.  3. 
The  word  Belial  (R.  V.  marg.)  refers  rather  to  physical  than  moral 
ruin. 

5.  'Cords  and  snares' represent  the  hunter's  arts,  dangers  of 
the  field,  as  in  the  last  verse  the  dangers  of  the  flood  were 
described.     *  Prevented '  in  the  A.  V.  means  '  came  to  meet  me.' 

6.  For  the  frequentative  tense  called,  compare  note  on  verses. 
temple,  or  '  palace,'  i.  e.  heaven. 

7-15.  A  typical  description  of  a  theophany,  or  manifestation  of 
God.  Parallels  are  to  be  found  in  the  description  of  Sinai  in 
Exod.  xix ;  in  the  song  of  Deborah,  Judges  v  ;  in  the  opening  of 
Ps.  Ixviii,  and  in  Hab.  iii.  The  phenomena  of  earthquake  and 
thunderstorm  are  used  for  the  purpose,  and  the  disturbances  in 
nature  are  understood  to  be  characteristic  marks  of  august  power, 
often  of  anger,  judgement,  and  punishment  of  enemies. 

8.  The  phraseology  employed  here  is  sometimes  called  *  mytho- 
logical.' Anthropomorphic  it  certainly  is,  in  a  marked  degree,  but 
in  so  poetical  a  passage  this  is  not  felt  to  detract  from  the  dignit}' 
of  the  subject.  Metaphor  is  needful  for  the  bringing  home  of 
spiritual  truth  to  the  multitude,  nor  can  the  few  dispense  with 
it  entirely.  Fire,  smoke,  hot  coals,  all  indicate  with  naturalness 
and  force  the  wrath  of  the  Most  High,  and  such  figures  are  common 
in  most  languages,  as  in  the  O.  T.  ;  compare  xcvii.  3. 

9.  Parallels  to  the  phrases  of  this  verse  may  be  found  in  Isa. 

H  2 


loo  THE    PSALMS   18.  10-15 

And  thick  darkness  was  under  his  feet. 

10  And  he  rode  upon  a  cherub,  and  did  fly : 

Yea,  he  flew  swiftly  upon  the  wings  of  the  wind. 

11  He  made  darkness  his  hiding  place,  his  pavilion  round 

about  him ; 
Darkness  of  waters,  thick  clouds  of  the  skies. 

12  At  the  brightness  before  him  his  thick  clouds  passed. 
Hailstones  and  coals  of  fire. 

13  The  Lord  also  thundered  in  the  heavens, 
And  the  Most  High  uttered  his  voice ; 
Hailstones  and  coals  of  fire. 

14  And  he  sent  out  his  arrows,  and  scattered  them ; 
Yea,  lightnings  manifold,  and  discomfited  them. 

15  Then  the  channels  of  waters  appeared, 

Ixiv.  I,  where  God  rends  the  heavens  to  come  down  ;  Gen.  xi.  7, 
where  He  descends  to  punish  the  builders  of  Babel ;  and  Exod.  xix. 
16,  where  the  storm-clouds  which  cause  thick  darkness  veil  His 
presence  before  a  signal  manifestation  of  Himself  and  His  will. 

10.  The  cherubim  are  winged  creatures  possessing  symbolic 
significance  which  can  only  be  gathered  from  a  comparison  of  the 
several  passages  in  which  they  are  mentioned.  They  stand  at 
the  entrance  of  the  garden  of  Eden,  Gen.  iii.  24 ;  overshadow 
the  mercy-seat  of  the  ark,  Exod.  xxv.  18,  i  Kings  vi.  23  ;  form 
a  kind  of  throne  for  Jehovah,  2  Kings  xix.  15  ;  and  figure  at  length 
in  the  vision  of  Ezek.  x.  They  represent  in  the  main  the  powers 
of  nature  in  attendance  upon  the  Most  High  God,  or  ministering 
to  His  majesty.  Here  the  cherub  seems  to  figure  as  a  spirit  of  the 
storm.  Render  the  latter  clause,  '  Yea,  he  came  swooping  upon 
the  wings  of  the  wind.' 

11.  By  a  bold  figure  the  dark  storm-cloud  forms  a  tent  from 
which  Jehovah  emerges. 

12.  Render,  *  From  the  brightness  before  him  through  his  thick 
clouds  there  passed  hailstones  and  coals  of  fire.'  Compare  Exod. 
xix.  18. 

13.  Ps.  xxix  furnishes  a  sublime  comment  upon  this  description 
of  thunder  as  the  voice  of  God.  The  last  line,  '  Hailstones  and 
coals  of  fire,'  should  probably  be  omitted  :  so  2  Samuel  and  the 
versions. 

For  the  title  'Elyon,  Most  High  God,  see  p.  359, 

15.  Read/ Then  the  bed  of  the  sea  was  seen,  and  the  foundations,' 


THE    PSALMS  18.  16-21  loi 

And  the  foundations  of  the  world  were  laid  bare, 

At  thy  rebuke,  O  Lord, 

At  the  blast  of  the  breath  of  thy  nostrils. 

He  sent  from  on  high,  he  took  me ;  16 

He  drew  me  out  of  many  waters. 

He  delivered  me  from  my  strong  enemy,  17 

And  from  them  that  hated  me,  for  they  were  too  mighty 
for  me. 

They  came  upon  me  in  the  day  of  my  calamity ;  18 

But  the  Lord  was  my  stay. 

He  brought  me  forth  also  into  a  large  place ;  19 

He  delivered  me,  because  he  delighted  in  me. 

The  Lord  rewarded  me  according  to  my  righteousness ;  20 

According  to  the  cleanness  of  my  hands  hath  he  recom- 
pensed me. 

For  I  have  kept  the  ways  of  the  Lord,  21 

And  have  not  wickedly  departed  from  my  God. 

For  all  his  judgements  were  before  me,  22 

And  I  put  not  away  his  statutes  from  me. 

&c. ,  phraseology  descriptive  of  what  happened  at  the  Red  Sea,  see 
Exod.  XV.  8.  The  phenomena  are  those  of  earthquake  or  hurri- 
cane. 

16.  We  now  reach  the  object  of  this  display  of  power— David 
is  deHvered,  as  Luther  says,  like  another  Moses  from  the  waters. 

17-1-9.  The  deliverance  is  described  in  very  general  terms — 
a  proof,  according  to  Wellhausen,  of  a  later  hand.  It  must  be 
recognized  however,  that  here,  as  throughout  the  Psalter,  it  is  no 
part  of  the  object  of  the  Psalmist  to  enter  into  details  such  as  the 
historian  expects  and  delights  in.  The  language  is  quite  adequate 
for  the  object  intended,  and  is  suitable  to  the  deliverance  from 
Saul — in  part  to  David's  victories  over  his  enemies.  Either  a  con- 
temporary or  a  later  writer  might  have  given  detailed  descriptions 
had  he  chosen,  see  Pss.  Ixxviii  and  cvi  ;  but  this  would  have 
altered  the  whole  style  of  composition.  The  larg^e  place  of  verse 
19  is  the  usual  phrase  for  deliverance  from  '  straits.' 

20-24.  The  assertion  of  innocence  in  this  section  is  comparative, 
not  absolute  ;  but  it  is  true  within  well-defined  limits.  It  is  more 
appropriate  in  David's  lips  before  his  fall,  or  as  written  by  another 


102  THE   PSALMS  18.  23-^8 

23  I  was  also  perfect  with  him^ 

And  I  kept  myself  from  mine  iniquity. 

24  Therefore  hath  the  Lord  recompensed  me  according  to 

my  righteousness, 
According  to  the  cleanness  of  my  hands  in  his  eyesight. 

25  With  the  merciful  thou  wilt  shew  thyself  merciful ; 
With  the  perfect  man  thou  wilt  shew  thyself  perfect ; 

26  With  the  pure  thou  wilt  shew  thyself  pure ; 

And  with  the  perverse  thou  wilt  shew  thyself  froward. 

27  For  thou  wilt  save  the  afflicted  people; 
But  the  haughty  eyes  thou  wilt  bring  down. 

a  8  For  thou  wilt  light  my  lamp  : 

concerning  him,  than  as  descriptive  of  the  post-Exilic  community. 
Perfect  with  him,  in  verse  23,  means  that  the  Psalmist  pre- 
served his  general  integrity  in  the  sight  of  God,  as  well  as  among 
men.     Compare  the  language  of  Ps.  ci. 

24-26.  Here  are  laid  down  in  bold  and  striking  form  certain 
principles  of  Divine  Providence,  which  are  seen  to  be  reasonable 
as  well  as  in  accordance  with  experience.  God's  action  must 
depend  on  man's  attitude,  else  there  can  be  no  moral  government 
or  meaning  in  history.  Cheyne  expresses  it  differently  when  he 
says,  '  an  impressive  statement  of  the  eternal  tragedy  of  history.' 

Three  words  are  used  on  the  side  of  righteousness,  merciful, 
perfect,  pure,  or,  as  we  may  say,  kindliness,  integrity,  and 
holiness.  One  word  only  represents  unrighteousness — a  very 
suggestive  one,  perverse,  or  froward.  If  a  man  is  at  cross- 
purposes  with  righteousness  he  will  find  that  Providence  will, 
sooner  or  later,  cross  him.  So  in  Lev.  xxvi.  23,  24,  '  If , . .  ye  will 
not  be  reformed  unto  me,  but  will  walk  contrary  unto  me ;  then 
will  I  also  walk  contrary  unto  you ;  and  I  will  smite  you,  even  I, 
seven  times  for  your  sins.' 

27.  Render,  '  For  thou  savest  the  afflicted  people, 

But  haughty  eyes  thou  dost  abase.' 

28.  Here  again  the  tenses  are  better  understood  as  presents, 
♦thou  lightest  my  lamp,'  and  'dost  enlighten  my  darkness' — a 
generalization  from  experience. 

In  I  Kings  xi.  36  we  find  the  phrase,  *  that  David  my  servant 
may  have  a  lamp  alway  before  me  in  Jerusalem,'  of  the  continua- 
tion of  the  dynasty  ;  and  Job  xviii.  6  speaks  of  the  lamp  of  the 
wicked  as  being  put  out.  The  parallel  passage  in  2  Sam.  xxii.  29 
represents  God  as  Himself  being  the  lamp  of  His  servant. 


THE   PSALMS   18.  29-35  103 

The  Lord  my  God  will  lighten  my  darkness. 

For  by  thee  I  run  upon  a  troop ;  29 

And  by  my  God  do  I  leap  over  a  wall. 

As  for  God,  his  way  is  perfect :  30 

The  word  of  the  Lord  is  tried ; 

He  is  a  shield  unto  all  them  that  trust  in  him. 

For  who  is  God,  save  the  Lord  ?  31 

And  who  is  a  rock,  beside  our  God  ? 

The  God  that  girdeth  me  with  strength,  32 

And  maketh  my  way  perfect. 

He  maketh  my  feet  like  hinds' y^^/:  33 

And  setteth  me  upon  my  high  places. 

He  teacheth  my  hands  to  war ;  34 

So  that  mine  arms  do  bend  a  bow  of  brass. 

Thou  hast  also  given  me  the  shield  of  thy  salvation :  35 

And  thy  right  hand  hath  holden  me  up,  ^,  ,,., ,  j 

29.  Render,  *  I  can  run  upon  a  troop,'  as  in  the  war  with  the 
Atnalekites  in  i  Sam,  xxx.  8,  15,  23,  and  '  by  my  God  I  can  leap 
over  a  wall,'  as  in  attacking  the  Jebusites,  2  Sam.  v.  6-8. 

30.  Whatever  be  the  views  of  men,  or  the  variations  in  man's 
conduct,  God's  way  is  flawless ;  His  words  are  pure  and  trust- 
worthy ;  His  defence  is  sure. 

31.  32.  A  close  parallel  may  be  observed  with  the  passage  Deut. 
xxxii.  31  foil.,  but  the  Psalmist  is  as  likely  to  be  original  as  the 
writer  of  the  song.  The  word  '  Eloah  '  for  God,  found  four  times 
in  the  Psalter,  is  an  old  word,  perhaps  specially  indicating  God  as 
reverenced.     God's  way  is  '  perfect '  towards  the  '  perfect '  man. 

33.  He  enables  me  to  travel  rapidly,  yet  securely  makes  my 
feet  sv^dft  and  yet  sure  in  the  most  difficult  places,  like  a  chamois 
among  the  rocks.     See  Deut.  xxxii.  13. 

34.  Brass,  an  amalgam  of  copper  and  zinc,  stands  sometimes 
for  copper,  as  in  Deut.  viii.  9.  Here,  and  usually,  for  bronze, 
a  compound  of  copper  and  tin.  A  metal  bow,  such  as  is  mentioned 
in  Job  XX.  34,  would  be  made  of  bronze. 

35.  Emphasis  is  laid  here  upon  the  Divine  help  which  enabled 
David  to  gain  the  victories  hereinafter  described.  Else  the  catalogue 
of  his  achievements  would  sound  vainglorious,  like  the  cuneiform 
inscriptions  which  in  high-flown  language  set  forth  the  conquests 
of  the  Assyrians. 


I04  THE   PSALMS  18.  36-42 

And  thy  gentleness  bath  made  me  great. 

36  Thou  hast  enlarged  my  steps  under  me, 
And  my  feet  have  not  slipped. 

37  I  will  pursue  mine  enemies,  and  overtake  them : 
Neither  will  I  turn  again  till  they  are  consumed. 

38  I  will  smite  them  through  that  they  shall  not  be  able  to 

rise : 
They  shall  fall  under  my  feet. 

39  For  thou  hast  girded  me  with  strength  unto  the  battle : 
Thou  hast  subdued  under  me  those  that  rose  up  against 

me. 

40  Thou  hast  also  made  mine  enemies  turn  their  backs  unto 

me, 
That  I  might  cut  off  them  that  hate  me. 

41  They  cried,  but  there  was  none  to  save : 

Even  unto  the  Lord,  but  he  answered  them  not. 

42  Then  did  I  beat  them  small  as  the  dust  before  the  wind : 
I  did  cast  them  out  as  the  mire  of  the  streets. 

In  the  last  clause  the  word  gentleness  means  properly  '  low- 
liness,'a  strange  word  to  apply  to  God,  yet  one  of  great  beauty 
and  truth.  Compare  '  He  humbleth  himself  in  cxiii.  5,  6.  The 
translation  'condescension,'  R.  V.  marg.,  gives  the  idea,  but  is  too 
stiff.  The  LXX  timidly  paraphrases  by  a  word  which  means 
'  kindly  discipline,'  and  this  is  probably  the  origin  of  P.  B.  V. 
Moving  correction.' 

37.  The  tenses  here  and  in  subsequent  verses  cause  some 
difficulty.  Strange  though  it  may  seem  to  an  English  reader,  they 
are  susceptible  of  very  different  meanings.  They  may  indicate 
a  retrospect  of  the  past,  as  A.  V.  '  I  have  pursued '  ;  or  a  forecast 
of  the  future,  as  R.  V.  Z  will  pursue ;  or  a  broad  general  statement, 
as  in  the  present  'I  pursue.'  Commentators  are  divided  as  to 
which  shade  of  meaning  predominates.  Verse  40  is  retrospective, 
and  may  carry  the  others  with  it  ;  but  in  verses  37  and  38,  44  and 
45  it  seems  much  better  to  render  by  the  English  historical 
present,  '  I  pursue,  I  overtake  ...  as  soon  as  they  hear,  they 
obey,'  &c. 

41.  'They  cried  .  .  .  even  unto  Jehovah  ' :  does  this  imply  that 
the  enemies  in  question  were  Israelites  ?    Not  necessarily.    Prayer 


THE   PSALMS  18.  43-48  105 

Thou  hast  delivered  me  from  the  strivings  of  the  people ;  43 

Thou  hast  made  me  the  head  of  the  nations : 

A  people  whom  I  have  not  known  shall  serve  me. 

As  soon  as  they  hear  of  me  they  shall  obey  me  :  44 

The  strangers  shall  submit  themselves  unto  me. 

The  strangers  shall  fade  away,  45 

And  shall  come  trembling  out  of  their  close  places. 

The  Lord  liveth  ;  and  blessed  be  my  rock ;  46 

And  exalted  be  the  God  of  my  salvation  : 

Even  the  God  that  executeth  vengeance  for  me,  47 

And  subdueth  peoples  under  me. 

He  rescueth  me  from  mine  enemies  :  48 

Yea,  thou  liftest  me  up  above  them  that  rise  up  against  me: 

Thou  deliverest  me  from  the  violent  man. 


to  a  God  whom  they  had  proved  to  be  mighty  may  have  been 
wrung  from  heathen  foes  in  their  despair. 

43.  2  Sam.  xxii.  44  reads  '  my  people.'  The  two  passages 
together  remind  us  that  David  was  engaged  in  both  civil  and 
foreign  wars.  The  uncertainty  of  the  tenses  appears  here  again, 
see  R.  V.  marg.  Some  render,  '  did  serve  me '  ;  better  in  the 
present,  as  Driver  and  others,  '  A  people  whom  I  have  not  known 
serve  me ' ;  and  so  in  the  next  two  verses.  The  clause  '  I  knew 
not '  means  that  nations  from  a  distance  sent  in  messages  of 
submission  at  the  very  report  of  David's  prowess  and  conquests. 

45.  '  They  fade  .  .  .  they  come  trembling' :  their  forces  dwindle 
away,  and  they  come  from  their  hiding-places  with  offers  of  sur- 
render. 

46-50.  May  be  taken  as  a  closing,  though  somewhat  prolonged 
doxology. 

47.  The  meaning  of  veng"eance  should  be  rightly  understood.  It 
is  said  in  xciv,  i  to  belong  to  God  ;  '  vengeance  is  mine,'  Rom.  xii. 
20.  But  that  power  of  avenging  evil  which  God  keeps  in  His  own 
hands  and  puts  forth  in  His  own  time  and  way  has  in  it  no 
personal  vindictiveness  ;  its  object  is  the  vindication  of  righteous- 
ness— a  very  different  thing. 

48.  The  change  from  the  plural  to  the  singular— enemies, 
violent  man — and  vice  versa  is  common  in  the  Psalms.  The 
singular  sometimes  stands  for  the  class  collectively,  and  the  plural 
does  not  shut  out  the  thought  of  an  individual  prominent  in  the 
writer's  mind. 


io6  THE    PSALMS  18.  49— 19.  i 

49  Therefore  I  will  give  thanks  unto  thee,  O  Lord,  among 

the  nations. 
And  will  sing  praises  unto  thy  name. 

50  Great  deliverance  giveth  he  to  his  king ; 
And  sheweth  lovingkindness  to  his  anointed, 
To  David  and  to  his  seed,  for  evermore. 

19  For  the  Chief  Musician.     A  Psalm  of  David. 

I  The  heavens  declare  the  glory  of  God ; 

49.  The  proclamation  of  Jehovah  among'  the  nations  has  been 
adduced  as  evidence  of  late  date,  but  without  sufficient  reason. 
This  verse  is  quoted  by  Paul  in  Rom.  xv.  9  of  the  Gentiles  as  heirs 
of  salvation. 

50.  The  opening  phrase  of  this  verse  is  an  excellent  rendering 
of  the  words  which  mean  literally  '  He  magnifieth  the  salvation(s) 
of  his  king,'  and  the  mention  of  the  '  king  '  and  of  '  David '  raises 
the  question  whether  this  verse  is  an  addition  of  a  later  poet,  or 
whether  David  himself  thus  sums  up  the  whole  lessons  of  his  life 
and  the  fulfilment  of  the  promises  made  to  him  by  Nathan  in 
2  Sam.  vii. 

It  is  possible  that  David  wrote  the  words  himself,  but  the  mention 
of  '  David  and  his  seed  '  reads  much  more  like  the  addition  of  an 
editor  preparing  a  Psalm  of  David  for  use  in  the  worship  of  the 
congregation. 

Psalm  XIX.     God  in  His  Works  and  in  His  Word. 

It  is  clear  from  the  example  of  Ps.  cviii  that  different  Psalms 
were  sometimes  combined  to  form  a  new  whole,  and  from  i  Chron. 
XV  that  portions  of  Psalms  were  sometimes  so  blended  together. 
It  is  very  probable  that  such  a  case  of  combination  is  before  us 
in  Ps.  xix,  since  the  style  and  rhythm  and  phraseology  of  verses 
1-6  differ  considerably  from  verses  7-11.  But  if  this  is  so,  the 
union  has  been  most  skilfully  effected,  while  verses  12-14, 
which  belong  to  the  latter  portion,  constitute  an  appropriate  close 
to  the  whole. 

'  Two  worlds  are  ours,'  says  the  Christian  poet  :  this  Psalm 
enables  us  to  understand  them  both.  It  shows  us  how  to  study 
intelligently  the  book  of  nature  which  he  '  who  runs  may  read,'  and 
also  that  '  mystic  heaven  and  earth  within,'  which  is  '  plain  as  the 
sea  and  sky '  only  to  him  who  has  learned  the  secret  of  Jehovah. 
Most  readers  of  this  Psalm  will  recall  the  passage  of  Kant — 
often  incorrectly  quoted — *  There  are  two  things  that  fill  my  soul 
with  holy  reverence  and  ever-growing  wonder — the  spectacle  of 


THE   PSALMS  19.  2  107 

And  the  firmament  sheweth  his  handywork. 
Day  unto  day  uttereth  speech, 

the  starry  sky  that  virtually  annihilates  us  as  physical  beings,  and 
the  moral  law  which  raises  us  to  infinite  dignity  as  intelligent 
agents.'  But  it  is  only  as  the  dark  dome  of  the  soul  within  is 
illumined  by  the  light  of  moral  and  spiritual  truth  that  the  full 
meaning  of  the  star-lit  sky  without  can  be  understood.  And  it 
is  the  glory  of  Israel  that  she  more  than  any  other  nation  has 
helped  to  teach  the  world  this  lesson.  This  Psalm  has  played  no 
mean  part  in  impressing  it  upon  succeeding  generations. 

Hence,  while  we  are  quite  prepared  to  recognize  the  distinction 
between  the  two  parts  of  the  Psalm,  marked  by  the  change  of 
names  from  El,  the  God  of  creation,  to  Yahweh,  the  covenant  God 
of  Israel  and  God  of  Grace,  these  two  portions  blend  admirably 
together,  and  each  gains  in  significance  by  the  conjunction.  If  the 
latter  was  written  as  an  appendix  to  the  former,  or  if  a  third 
Psalmist  combined  the  compositions  of  other  two,  a  certain 
religious  insight  or  genius  is  displayed  in  the  union.  For  the 
instruction  of  generations  Ps.  xix  has  been,  and  will  remain, 
beautifully  and  indissolubly  one. 

The  tone  of  the  latter  half  of  the  Psalm,  reminding  us  constantly 
of  Ps.  cxix,  would  suggest  a  post-ExiHc  date,  whilst  the  first  half 
might  well  have  been  written  by  David  himself.  Certain  '  Ara- 
maisms,'  as  they  have  been  called,  in  verses  3  and  5  have  been 
alleged  as  objections  to  this.  But  the  forms  may  be  regarded  as 
poetical,  and  we  are  decidedly  of  opinion,  with  Ewald,  that  verses 
1-6  form  a  fragment  of  an  early  and  noble  lyric. 

1.  The  revelation  of  God  in  nature  is  here  illustrated  from  the 
sky  and  the  sun.  Perhaps  the  original  poem  contained  a  fuller 
description  of  the  splendours  of  creation,  since  verse  6  breaks  off 
abruptly.  The  glory  of  God  in  the  storm  is  set  forth  in  Ps.  xxix ; 
in  Ps.  xciii  the  ocean  displays  His  majesty,  while  in  Ps.  civ 
His  marvellous  works  both  in  heaven  and  in  earth  are  described 
at  length. 

g-lory :  i.  e.  manifested  excellence.  The  Psalmist  is  not 
troubled  by  any  contrast  between  'nature'  and  nature's  God, 
such  as  has  disturbed  the  minds  of  students  of  physical  science 
in  later  days.  Those  who  would  see  in  the  sky  what  the  Psalmist 
saw  must  add  to  faith  knowledge,  and  to  knowledge  faith. 

finuaxuent,  derived  from  a  root  meaning  'to  stretch,'  is,  as 
in  Gen.  i.  6,  the  name  of  the  expanse  of  sky  immediately  over 
the  earth. 

2.  Day  and  night  have  each  a  message  ;  when  darkness  comes, 
more,  not  less,  is  told  us  of  the  heavenly  orbs.  '  If  light  can  thus 
deceive,  wherefore  not  life  ? ' 


io8  THE    PSALMS   19.  3,4 

And  night  unto  night  sheweth  knowledge. 

3  There  is  no  speech  nor  language ; 
Their  voice  cannot  be  heard. 

4  Their  hne  is  gone  out  through  all  the  earth, 
And  their  words  to  the  end  of  the  world. 

In  them  hath  he  set  a  tabernacle  for  the  sun, 

The  word  for  sheweth  is  a  different  one  from  that  used  in 
verse  i,  and  this  should  be  noted  in  English.    Render: — 

'Day  unto  day  poureth  forth  speech, 
And  night  unto  night  proclaimeth  knowledge.' 

3.  The  three  clauses  of  this  verse  are  impressive  in  their 
extreme  brevity.  Render,  'There  is  no  speech,  neither  are 
there  words,  their  voice  is  not  heard.'  The  familiar  rendering  of 
A.  v.,  '  There  is  no  speech  nor  language  where  their  voice  is  not 
heard,'  is  that  of  LXX  and  Greek  versions,  of  the  Targum  and 
Jerome,  of  Luther  and  Calvin,  and,  in  modern  times,  of  Delitzsch. 
It  means  that  the  words  of  these  witnesses  are  heard  in  every 
language  and  every  nation  of  mankind,  and  it  may  be  argued  for  this 
view  that  verse  4  is  continuous  with  it  in  meaning,  whereas  the 
translation  of  R.  V.  would  seem  to  require  an  adversative  '  but '  to 
begin  that  verse.  But  this  meaning  of  *  speech  'and  *  language '  is 
not  in  accordance  with  the  Hebrew ;  the  introduction  of '  where '  in 
A.  V.  is  uncalled  for  and  arbitrary :  while  the  very  independence 
of  the  clauses  as  rendered  above,  without  introductory  conjunc- 
tions, is  striking  and  forcible. 

The  meaning  of  the  verse  as  now  translated  is  admirably 
brought  out  by  Addison,  who  describes  the  'solemn  silence*  in 
which  the  orbs  revolve.  His  phrase  '  no  real  voice  nor  sound ' 
must  be  understood  in  the  proper  etymological  sense  of  '  real ' — 
concrete,  objective,  audible  to  the  outward  ears.  It  is  quite 
consistent  with  the  line  that  follows,  '  Forever  singing  as  they 
shine,'  for  that  voice  is  audible  only  to  '  reason's  ear.'  The  music 
of  each  celestial  orb  which,  according  to  Shakespeare,  '  in  his 
motion  like  an  angel  sings,  Still  quiring  to  the  young-ej-ed 
cherubins '  is  unheard  by  those  whom  *  the  muddy  vesture  of 
decay'  doth  still  close  grossly  in  ;  but  Addison  follows  the  Psalmist 
in  teaching  that  men  may  still  hear  the  voice  which  says,  'The 
hand  that  made  us  is  Divine.' 

4.  World-wide  is  this  message ;  because  so  spiritual,  therefore 
universal. 

line  is  to  be  understood  as  in  xvi.  6  ;    the  measuring  line 
:  which  delimitates  is  put  for  the  region  marked  out  and  possessed ; 


THE   PSALMS  19.  5-9  109 

Which  is  as  a  bridegroom  coming  out  of  his  chamber,       5 

And  rejoiceth  as  a  strong  man  to  run  his  course. 

His  going  forth  is  from  the  end  of  the  heaven,  6 

And  his  circuit  unto  the  ends  of  it : 

And  there  is  nothing  hid  from  the  heat  thereof. 

The  law  of  the  Lord  is  perfect,  restoring  the  soul :  ^ 

The  testimony  of  the  Lord  is  sure,  making  wise  the  simple. 
The  precepts  of  the  Lord  are  right,  rejoicing  the  heart :   8 
The  commandment  of  the  Lord  is  pure,  enlightening  the 

eyes. 
The  fear  of  the  Lord  is  clean,  enduring  for  ever  :  9 

The  judgements  of  the  Lord  are  true,  atid  righteous 

altogether. 

cf.  Jer.  xxxi.  39.  The  '  sound  *  of  P.  B.  V.  follows  the  LXX  and 
other  versions,  and  is  preserved  by  Paul  in  Rom.  x.  18  to  illustrate 
the  universalitj'  of  the  Gospel  message.  It  depends  upon  another 
reading  of  the  Hebrew,  and  gives  a  good  sense. 

5.  The  fine  comparisons  of  this  verse  belong  to  the  earlier 
period  of  Hebrew  poetry,  and  are  now  in  themselves  classical.  \ 
Fresh,  joyful,  strong  and  confident  in  his  strength,  ready  for  j 
a  great  and  successful  future  is  the  bridegroom-hero  who  re- 
presents the  sun.  '  Goeth  forth  from  his  canopy '  is  a  tempting 
translation,  but  the  custom  of  being  married  under  a  canopy, 
Chuppah,  belongs  to  later  Hebrew  usage.  For  the  phrase  '  coming 
out  of  the  bridal  chamber '  cf.  Joel  ii.  16. 

6.  The  natural  appearances  of  the  sky  are  obviously  followed 
here.  The  sun  appears  to  revolve,  beginning  at  one  '  end  of  the 
heaven,*  and  his  circuit  is  '  to  the  ends  of  it  again/  diffusing 
universal  life  and  blessing.  It  is  difficult  to  think  either  that  a  poem 
ended  with  these  words,  or  that  a  Psalmist  passed  immediately 
from  them  to  those  which  follow. 

7-9.  The  praises  of  the  Law.  Rhythm  and  structure  change. 
A  peculiar  measure  known  as  the  Quiah  or  Elegiac  metre  is  em- 
ployed. Even  in  English  it  can  be  seen  how  each  line  is  divided 
into  two  parts,  a  longer  and  a  shorter,  by  a  caesura,  or  break. 
This  scheme  of  verse,  says  Delitzsch,  'as  it  were  rises  higher, 
draws  deeper  breaths,  rises  and  falls  like  the  waves  of  the  sea ; 
for  the  Torah  inspires  the  poet  more  than  does  the  sun.'  It  does 
not  follow  that  the  more  elaborate  structure  is  the  more  effective, 
and  yet  it  has  a  dignity  of  its  own.     In  three  verses  are  to  be 


no  THE   PSALMS  19.  ro-12 

10  More  to  be  desired  are  they  than  gold,  yea,  than  much  fine 

gold: 
Sweeter  also  than  honey  and  the  honeycomb. 

11  Moreover  by  them  is  thy  servant  warned  : 
In  keeping  of  them  there  is  great  reward. 

1 2  Who  can  discern  his  errors  ? 
Clear  thou  me  from  hidden  faults. 

found  six  names  and  twelve  encomiums  of  the  law  which  this 
Psalmist,  like  the  writer  of  Ps.  cxix,  delights  to  praise  in  varied 
strains. 

The  names  are  law,  Torah,  a  general  Divine  revelation ; 
tegtimony,  Eduih,  that  which  attests  the  will  of  God  and  hence 
forms  the  norm  for  man ;  precepts,  Pekudim^  distinct  directions 
in  details ;  commandment,  Mitevah,  a  statutory  deliverance 
summing  up  the  whole  ;  fear,  Yir'ah,  a  subjective  feeling  which  is 
intended  to  give  objective  direction,  since  a  man's  actions  should 
correspond  with  his  reverence  for  God  ;  and  judgfements,  Mt'sh- 
patim,  right  decisions  constituting  in  themselves  a  kind  of  body  of 
law  for  guidance. 

So  with  the  adjectives  and  participial  clauses  which  describe 
the  excellence  of  God's  revelation  of  Himself  in  His  word.  This 
is  said  to  be  perfect,  restorinsr  the  soul,  i.  e.  it  refreshes  as  with 
food  and  comfort,  re-vivifies,  not  'brings  back  from  wandering.' 
It  is  sure,  and  as  '  sound  doctrine '  may  be  relied  upon  to  give 
the  guidance  of  steady  principle,  making-  wise  the  simple  who 
are  easily  led  astray.  It  is  right,  rejoicing"  the  heart,  since  joy 
must  spring  from  the  consciousness  of  being  in  one's  right  place 
and  travelling  in  the  right  road.  It  is  pure,  enlightening  the  eyes, 
for  light  must  be  clear  and  illumining.  It  is  clean,  enduring  for 
ever;  purity  abides,  immorality  is  corrupting,  corruptible  and 
transient.  Finally  these  manifold  declarations  of  God's  will  in  all 
their  aspects  are  true,  and  righteous  altogether — a  break  in  the 
metre  occurring  here,  which  rounds  the  paragraph  off  to  a  close. 

10.  Other  lines  of  praise  lead  to  a  comparison  with  the 
preciousness  of  gold  and  the  sweetness  of  honey,  as  in  Ps.  cxix. 
Translate  with  R.  V.  marg.,  '  honey  and  the  outpouring  of  the 
honeycomb.'  The  purest  honey  is  the  virgin  honey  which  flows 
freely  and  naturally  from  the  cells. 

11.  The  true  servant  of  God  understands  the  value  of  warnings, 
from  which  others  shrink  as  interfering  with  the  enjoyment  of 
following  their  own  way.  He  has  discovered  wherein  lies  the 
reward  of  obedience. 

12.  The  effect  of  contemplating  law  is  not  immediately  pleasant. 


THE   PSALMS  19.  13— 20.  i  in 

Keep  back  thy  servant  also  from  presumptuous  si?is',        13 
Let  them  not  have  dominion  over  me :  then  shall  1  be 

perfect, 
And  I  shall  be  clear  from  great  transgression. 
Let  the  words  of  my  mouth  and  the  meditation  of  my  14 

heart  be  acceptable  in  thy  sight, 
O  Lord,  my  rock,  and  my  redeemer. 

For  the  Chief  Musician.     A  Psalm  of  David.  20 

The  Lord  answer  thee  in  the  day  of  trouble ;  i 

It  forms  a  mirror  which  shows  each  man  his  actual  self — no  lovely 
sight.  The  word  translated  '  errors  '  indicates  those  slighter  and 
more  venial  faults  which  easily  escape  notice,  but  which  testify  to 
a  roving  will.  Jeremiah  (xvii.  9)  brings  out  the  same  thought  of 
the  subtlety  of  sin,  the  self-deception,  the  unfathomable  evil  of  the 
human  heart.  The  Psalmist  prays  that  he  may  not  be  held  guilty 
in  respect  of  such  wanderings  of  desire. 

13.  The  distinction  between  sins  of  ignorance  and  sins  of  pre- 
sumption— literally  those  which  '  boil  over '  with  wantonness  and 
daring — is  familiar  in  the  law.  See  Lev.  iv.  i,  13  ;  Num.  xv.  22. 
According  to  the  text  of  R.  V.  the  Psalmist  prays  to  be  preserved 
from  these  two  kinds  of  sin — venial  and  mortal ;  in  more  modern 
phraseology — then  he  will  be  perfect  indeed. 

Many  modern  interpreters,  however,  prefer  the  rendering  of 
R.  V.  marg.,  'from  the  proud,'  i.  e.  oppressors  who,  as  many 
Psalms  suggest,  made  life  hard  for  the  faithful  followers  of  God's 
law. 

Let  them  not  have  dominion  may  be  readily  understood 
of  sins  which  enslave  and  subjugate,  and  an  excellent  N.  T.  meaning 
may  be  deduced  from  this  rendering,  but  the  analogy  of  other 
passages  favours  the  marginal  reading. 

14.  The  LXX  reads,  *  alway  acceptable,'  hence  the  P.  B.  V. 
This  closing  prayer  bespeaks  the  spirit  of  a  man  who  has  schooled 
himself  by  the  law  of  God,  who  knows  how  unworthy  and  sinful 
man's  oflFerings  at  best  must  be,  but  who  has  learned  also  that 
praise  and  prayer,  silent  as  well  as  vocal,  form  an  acceptable 
sacrifice,  when  coming  from  a  heart  made  pure,  not  so  much  by 
the  cleansing  law,  as  by  the  cleansing  grace,  of  God. 

Psalm  XX.     For  the  King  going  out  to  Battle. 
This  and  the  following  Psalm  should  be  read  together.     The 
community,  by  the  mouth  of  a  sacred  poet,  praj's  for  its  king,  now 
as  he  goes  forth  to  battle,  now  as  he  returns  triumphant.     We 


112  THE   PSALMS  20.  2,3 

The  name  of  the  God  of  Jacob  set  thee  up  on  high  ; 

2  Send  thee  help  from  the  sanctuary, 
And  strengthen  thee  out  of  Zion  ; 

3  Remember  all  thy  offerings, 

And  accept  thy  burnt  sacrifice;  [Selah 

have  not  sufficient  data  to  enable  us  to  determine  what  particular 
king  was  first  intended.  It  is  not  to  be  understood  that  David 
wrote  these  Psalms  ;  but  they  may  have  been  written  in  relation 
to  him;  their  general  tone  and  spirit  indicates  an  early  date. 
DeHtzsch  follows  the  Syriac  Version  in  referring  this  Psalm  to 
David's  war  against  the  Ammonites  (see  2  Sam.  x.  10  and  xii.  26), 
and  the  Syrians  who  were  allied  with  them  and  helped  them  with 
horses  and  chariots  (cf.  verse  7).  Theodore  of  Mopsuestia  refers 
the  Psalm  to  Hezekiah  :  Asa  and  Uzziah  have  also  been  suggested. 
The  attempt  to  refer  the  Psalm  to  the  Maccabaean  period,  Simon 
being  the  '  king'  in  question,  is  surely  forced  and  unnatural.  The 
tone  of  the  Psalm  is  strongly  personal,  hence  a  Messianic  applica- 
tion has  been  given  to  it.  It  is,  however,  suitable  in  a  sense  as 
a  prayer  for  all  magistrates  and  men  in  high  office  (Luther),  or  for 
that  church-kingdom  of  Christ,  of  which  Israel  was  the  type  (Calvin). 
The  style  of  this  short  Psalm  is  vigorous,  and  its  tone  of 
confidence  in  God  earnest  and  complete.  It  might  well  be 
arranged  for  antiphonal  singing  :  in  the  first  part  (verses  1-5)  the 
people  join  in  prayer  ;  then  a  single  voice,  of  priest  or  Levite,  is 
heard  in  response  (verse  6),  and  this  may,  or  may  not,  continue  in 
verses  7  and  8  ;  in  modern  music  these  would  be  sung  in  quartette, 
whilst  in  any  case  the  last  verse  represents  the  whole  congrega- 
tion as  joining  in  the  chorus  of  God  save  the  King  ! 

1.  The  sacred  name  stands  for  the  character  of  Jehovah  as 
revealed  in  history. 

God  of  Jacob  takes  us  back  to  the  patriarch's  own  life,  as  in 
Gen.  XXXV.  3,  *  the  God  who  answered  me  in  the  day  of  my 
distress ' ;  and  xlviii.  15,  '  the  God  who  fed  me  all  my  Hfe  long  unto 
this  day'  ;  but  also  to  the  history  of  his  descendants  who  had 
often  cried  to  God  and  been  heard  in  the  day  of  trouble. 

set  thee  up  on  higrh  reminds  us  that  deliverance  is  sometimes 
described  as  being  set  at  large  from  straits,  sometimes  as  being 
lifted  above  the  reach  of  foes. 

2,  3.  Prayer  and  sacrifice  in  the  sanctuary  are  depended  upon 
as  giving  a  sacred  character  to  the  warfare  and  securing  the 
blessing  of  Jehovah.  So  Samuel  offered  sacrifice  before  the  war 
with  the  Philistines  (i  Sam.  vii.  ro),  and  Jeremiah  speaks  of  '  con- 
secrating a  war'  (vi.  4). 

accept  literally  means  'receive  as  fat,'  the  best  part  of  the 


THE   PSALxMS  20.  4-7  113 

Grant  thee  thy  heart's  desire,  4 

And  fulfil  all  thy  counsel. 

We  will  triumph  in  thy  salvation,  5 

And  in  the  name  of  our  God  we  will  set  up  our  banners  : 
The  Lord  fulfil  all  thy  petitions. 

Now  know  I  that  the  Lord  saveth  his  anointed ;  6 

He  will  answer  him  from  his  holy  heaven 
With  the  saving  strength  of  his  right  hand. 
Some  trust  in  chariots,  and  some  in  horses  :  7 

But  we  will  make  mention  of  the  name  of  the  Lord  our 
God. 


animal  being  consumed  as  an  offering  to  God.  Whether  this  be 
a  mere  pagan  superstition,  or  a  pious  act  of  devotion,  depends  on 
the  motives  and  the  end  of  the  warfare. 

Selah  perhaps  indicates  an  interval  during  which  music 
sounded  and  a  part  of  the  sacrificial  service  was  conducted. 

4.  The  end  aimed  at  is  not  personal  aggrandizement,  hence 
the  means  adopted,  the  counsel,  or  plan  of  campaign,  may  be 
directed  by  God. 

5.  Render,  'That  we  may,'  or  '  So  will  we  shout  for  joy,'  over 
the  deliverance  we  expect.  The  prayer  is  still  continued,  and  finds 
its  climax  in  the  last  clause  of  this  verse. 

6.  Though  there  is  no  Selah,  an  interval  evidently  takes  place 
between  the  last  verse  and  this.  Wow  shows  that  something  has 
happened.  The  sacrifice  is  supposed  to  have  been  offered  and,  as 
sign  of  the  Divine  acceptance,  has  been  consumed  by  the  sacred 
flame.  The  Azkarah  or  memorial,  the  part  which  ascended  in  the 
holy  fire,  reminded  the  Deity  of  His  suppliant. 

saveth  is  a  prophetic  perfect.  The  victory  is  as  if  already 
won.  'A  whisper  may  start  an  avalanche.  The  prayer  of  the 
people  has  set  Omnipotence  in  motion.'     (Maclaren.) 

7.  The  word  '  trust '  is  not  expressed  in  the  Hebrew,  and  either 
the  verb  •  make  mention  of  may  be  supplied  from  the  next  clause 
or  the  ellipsis  filled  up  as  in  our  versions.  '  Horses  and  chariots ' 
were  formidable  indeed  to  the  Israelites,  especially  in  the  early 
days.  They  were  bidden  not  to  adopt  this  mode  of  warfare,  as  in 
Deut.  xvii.  16  the  king  is  not  to  'multiply  horses,'  but  rather  to 
destroy  those  of  the  enemy.  Compare  the  conflict  with  Jabin  in 
Judges  V,  and  with  Assyria  under  Sennacherib. 

The  name  of  God  is  sufficient  as  the  watchword  of  His  people, 
and  to  'make  mention  of  it  implies  the  rallying  offerees  in  His 


114  THE    PSALMS  20.  8—21.  i 

8  They  are  bowed  down  and  fallen  : 
But  we  are  risen,  and  stand  upright. 

9  Save,  Lord  : 

Let  the  King  answer  us  when  we  call. 

21  For  the  Chief  Musician.     A  Psalm  of  David. 

I  The  king  shall  joy  in  thy  strength,  O  Lord  ; 
And  in  thy  salvation  how  greatly  shall  he  rejoice  I 

strength  and  under  His  protection.     This  spirit  has  often  welded 
ordinary  soldiers  into  *  Ironsides.' 

8.  They  are  Tbowed  down,  &c.  These  words  are  uttered  before 
the  battle  begins,  in  anticipation  of  the  assured  overthrow  of  the 
enemy. 

9.  Render,  'O  Lord,  save  the  king,  and  answer  us  when  we 
call.'  So  LXX  and  Vulg.  and  many  of  the  best  modern  commenta- 
tors. Delitzsch,  as  well  as  A.  V.  and  R.  V. ,  follows  the  Massoretic 
punctuation,  let  the  'King,  i.  e.  God,  answer  ns,  &c.  This 
recognizes  the  true  kingship  of  Jehovah,  but  it  is  not  usual  for  the 
Psalmists  to  speak  of  Him  as  ^  the  King,'  as  if  this  were  in  itself 
a  title  of  Deity.  The  refrain  of  the  National  Anthem  is  taken 
from  the  Vulgate  rendering  in  this  place,  Domme,salvum/ac  regcm, 
and  it  must  be  understood  that  in  the  original  use  *  save '  means 
'  grant  him  victory.' 

Psalm  XXI.     Thanksgiving  for  a  Royal  Victory. 

A  companion  Psalm  to  the  preceding,  presenting  points  both  of 
similarity  and  of  contrast.  Both  Psalms  contain  prayer  for  a  king, 
but  here  petition  passes  into  triumph,  and  thanksgiving  is  offered 
for  an  apparently  recent  victory.  The  Psalm  is  suited  for  a  coron- 
ation, and  has  been  repeatedly  used  on  such  occasions,  but  the 
allusions  in  verses  3  and  4  do  not  imply  that  it  was  composed 
cither  for  a  coronation  or  a  royal  birthday.  A  traditional  Jewish 
interpretation  makes  it  a  Messianic  Psalm ;  the  Targum  reads 
'  King  Messiah  '  in  verses  i  and  7.  It  is  clear  that  the  king  in  the 
Psalm  is  closely  identified  with  the  cause  of  God,  and  is  His 
representative  on  earth  ;  thus  the  words  lend  themselves  naturally 
to  a  Messianic  application,  as  is  seen  by  the  use  of  the  Psalm  on 
Ascension  Day.  But  there  is  no  sufficient  reason  for  thinking 
that  this  was  originally  intended  by  the  Psalmist. 

The  former  part  of  the  Psalm,  verses  1-7,  is  to  be  sung  by  the 
congregation,  as  an  address  to  God  ;  there  follows  a  strophe, 
verses  8-12,   which  forms  an  address   to  the  king — it   may  be, 


THE   PSALMS  21.  2-6  115 

Thou  hast  given  him  his  heart's  desire,  2 

And  hast  not  withholden  the  request  of  his  lips.     [Selah 

For  thou  preventest  him  with  the  blessings  of  goodness :  3 

Thou  settest  a  crown  of  fine  gold  on  his  head. 

He  asked  life  of  thee,  thou  gavest  it  him ;  4 

Even  length  of  days  for  ever  and  ever. 

His  glory  is  great  in  thy  salvation  :  5 

Honour  and  majesty  dost  thou  lay  upon  him. 

For  thou  makest  him  most  blessed  for  ever :  6 

Thou  makest  him  glad  with  joy  in  thy  presence. 


intoned  by  priest  or  Levite  ;  while,  as  in  Ps.  xx,  the  Psalm 
closes  with  a  united  chant  on  the  part  of  the  whole  congregation. 
1,  2.  The  opening  verses  contain  a  special  thanksgiving  for 
recent  deliverance.  In  the  previous  Psalm  two  things  were  asked 
for — that  the  strength  of  God  should  be  manifested  in  the  king  and 
his  army  ;  and  that  thus  deliverance  and  safety  should  come  to 
the  people.     Now  the  community  rejoices  in  both. 

3.  The  Psalmist  passes  on  to  a  more  general  statement  of  the 
gifts  of  God  bestowed  upon  the  king. 

Render,  '  For  thou  comest  to  meet  him  with  the  blessings  of 
prosperity.'  The  word  gfooduess  is  a  literal  translation,  but  in 
English  seems  to  refer  to  the  goodness  of  God,  whereas  it  indicates 
the  'good  things'  (R.  V.  marg.)  which  the  king  had  abundantly 
enjoyed.  For  '  prevent '  see  xviii.  5.  The  reference  in  the  crown 
of  fine  gold  is  not  to  the  king's  coronation,  nor  to  the  recent 
victory ;  it  must  be  understood  as  a  general  description  of  the  royal 
dignity,  as  in  verse  5. 

4.  Long  life  among  the  Jews  signified  the  favour  of  God.  This 
is  the  more  intelligible  when  we  remember  how  completely  their 
religious  thought  was  concentrated  on  the  present  life.  The  same 
idea  is  conveyed  in  length  of  days  for  ever:  it  may  be  understood 
either  hyperbolically  of  the  king's  personal  life,  or  of  the  long 
continuance  of  his  dynasty,  or  both. 

5.  in  tliy  salvation:  i.  e.  through  the  victory  thou  hast  wrought 
out  for  him. 

6.  Lit.  'makest  him  blessings.'  Abraham  in  Gen.  xii.  2  is 
to  be  blessed  and  made  a  blessing,  and  the  plural  is  rightly 
translated  most  blessed.  A  proof  of  the  Divine  favour  is  ad- 
mission to  the  Divine  presence  and  a  glimpse  of  the  Divine  face. 
So  in  our  modern  use,  *  to  countenance.' 

I    2 


ii6  THE   PSALMS  21.  7-12 

r  For  the  king  trusteth  in  the  Lord, 
And  through  the  lovingkindness  of  the  Most  High  he 
shall  not  be  moved. 

8  Thine  hand  shall  find  out  all  thine  enemies : 
Thy  right  hand  shall  find  out  those  that  hate  thee. 

9  Thou  shalt  make  them  as  a  fiery  furnace  in  the  time  of 

thine  anger. 
The  Lord  shall  swallow  them  up  in  his  wrath, 
And  the  fire  shall  devour  them. 

10  Their  fruit  shalt  thou  destroy  from  the  earth. 
And  their  seed  from  among  the  children  of  men. 

11  For  they  intended  evil  against  thee : 

They  imagined  a  device,  which  they  are  not  able  to 
perform. 

12  For  thou  shalt  make  them  turn  their  back. 

Thou  shalt  make  ready  with  thy  bowstrings  against  the 
face  of  them. 


7.  In  verses  1-6  thou  implies  an  address  to  God  ;  in  8-12  thou 
refers  to  the  king  ;  this  verse  forms  a  transition  between  the  two, 
both  God  and  the  king  being  spoken  of  in  the  third  person.  The 
trust  is  such  as  was  exemplified  in  the  last  Psalm. 

9.  To  make  the  enemy  as  a  fiery  fiirnacs  apparently  means, 
*  as  the  fuel  consumed  in  the  furnace ' ;  see  Ixxxiii.  14,  where  '  as 
the  fire  that  burneth  the  forest '  means,  '  as  the  forest  that  is 
burned  in  the  fire.'  Render,  '  in  the  time  of  thy  wrathful  presence.* 
The  phrase  is  more  appropriately  understood  of  God  Himself;  if 
the  king  is  intended,  it  must  be  as  Divine  vicegerent. 

10.  fruit :  i.  e.  offspring;  see  cxxvii.  3,  '  the  fruit  of  the  womb 
is  his  reward.' 

11.  Render:— 

*  Though  they  intend  evil  against  thee. 
Though  they  imagine  a  mischievous  device, 
They  shall  not  prevail.' 

12.  thou  Shalt  make  ready,  &c.,  means  either,  'make  ready 
(the  arrows')  upon  thy  bowstrings,'  or,  <  aim  with  thy  bowstrings 
against  their  face,' 


THE    PSALMS  21.  i?— 22.  t  117 

Be  thou  exalted,  O  Lord,  in  thy  strength  :  13 

So  will  we  sing  and  praise  thy  power. 

For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  set  to  Aijeleth  hash-Shahar.     A  Psalm    22 
of  David. 

My  God,  my  God,  why  hast  thou  forsaken  me  ?  i 

_ 

-■  13.  The  concluding  verse  is  a  kind  of  doxology,  to  be  sung  in 
general  chorus.  Ps.  xx  ends  with  united  supplication,  and  this 
with  united  praise. 

Psalm  XXII.     A  Passion  Psalm. 

Of  whom  speaketh  the  Psalmist  this  ?  Of  himself,  or  of  some 
other?  This  is  a  question  that  has  often  been  asked,  and  very 
various  replies  have  been  given.  The  preliminary  question,  Who 
is  the  Psalmist  who  speaks  ?  cannot  be  definitely  answered,  and  even 
if  it  could,  the  more  important  question  of  interpretation  would 
remain.  Delitzsch  ascribes  the  Psalm  to  David  when  in  the 
wilderness  of  Maon,  others  attribute  it  to  Hezekiah,  others  to 
Jeremiah,  whilst  some  Christian  as  well  as  Jewish  interpreters 
attribute  it  to  a  sufferer  of  later  days  who  personifies  the  exiled 
and  oppressed  Jewish  nation.  Cheyne,  for  instance,  would  look 
to  the  period  of  Nehemiah  and  find  in  the  Psalm  a  description 
of  'the  ideal  Israehte,'  the  'flower  of  Israel,'  the  genius  of  the 
nation  '  in  word  and  act,  in  life  and  in  death,  rivalling  and  surpass- 
ing the  Israel  and  Moses  of  antiquity.'  The  period  of  the  later 
Monarchy  or  that  of  the  Exile  is  perhaps  the  most  probable  period 
for  the  composition  of  the  Psalm,  but  the  name  of  its  author  can 
never  be  known. 

Much  more  important  is  the  inquiry  whether  the  writer  was 
simply  recording  his  own  personal  experience,  or  whether  he 
wrote  as  representative  of  Israel,  or  whether  in  prophetic  spirit 
he  anticipated  the  redeeming  v\'-ork  of  the  suffering  Messiah. 
The  use  of  the  opening  words  made  bj'  our  Lord  upon  the  cross, 
and  the  close  coincidence  between  the  phraseology  of  verses  6-^ 
and  13-18  and  Christ's  sufferings  before  and  during  the  crucifixion, 
have  made  this  Psalm  peculiarly  sacred  to  Christians.  Bishop 
Alexander,  in  his  Bampton  Lectures  on  '  The  witness  of  the 
Psalms  to  Christ,'  has  written  very  impressively  of  the  Psalm 
from  this  point  of  view,  which  is  that  of  Cassiodorus — '  not  so 
much  a  prophecy  as  a  history,'  written  beforehand  of  the  pains 
through  which  the  Man  of  Sorrows  passed  for  the  world's  re- 
demption. It  would  not,  however,  be  sound  or  safe  interpretation 
to  rest  much  weight  upon  certain  coincidences,  touching  and 
impressive  as  these  are  to  the  mind  of  the  Christian  believer. 


ii8  THE    PSALMS  22.  j 

JV/iy  art  thou  so  far  from  helping  me,  and  from  the  words 
of  my  roaring  ? 

The  view  which  is  beginning  to  commend  itself  to  a  majority 
of  critics — it  is  at  least  that  of  the  present  writer — is  that  actual 
personal  experience  is  certainly  to  be  found  in  the  Psalm  and 
forms  its  basis,  but  that  the  language  in  some  places  so  far 
transcends  these  limits  that  it  contains  both  a  representative  and 
prophetic  significance.  The  primary  illustration  of  the  Psalmist's 
words  is  found  in  his  own  history,  a  wider  in  that  of  his  suffering^ 
nation,  whilst  the  full  meaning  of  at  least  some  verses  can  only 
be  found  in  an  event  which  lay  beyond  the  writer's  ken,  but  which 
*  the  spirit  of  Christ  that  was  in  him  did  signif3^'  A  fuller  account 
of  what  is  to  be  understood  by  *  Messianic '  Psalms  vdll  be  found 
in  the  Introduction  to  vol.  ii  of  this  work. 

The  Psalm  divides  naturally  into  two  parts  :  verses  1-21  describ- 
ing present  sufferings  and  pleading  for  deliverance,  while  verses 
22-31  contain  a  triumphant  acknowledgement  of  Divine  intervention 
and  the  widespread  blessings  which  are  to  result  from  this  signal 
proof  of  God's  grace  and  the  victory  of  the  patient  sufferer. 
More  minutely,  in  the  first  part  are  eight  strophes  of  two  or  three 
verses  each,  of  which  the  first  two  are  introductory,  five  describe 
the  sufferer's  woes,  and  the  last,  19-21,  contains  an  earnest  prayer. 
The  latter  half  contains  two  longer  stanzas,  22-26  and  27-31, 
expressing  thankfulness  and  joyful  anticipation. 

The  most  remarkable  feature  of  the  Psalm  is  the  extent  of  the 
blessing  contemplated  through  the  sufferings  of  God's  servant  and 
the  link  of  connexion  suggested  between  the  two  parts.  Not  only 
are  the  godly  in  Israel  and  the  whole  nation  to  share  in  the 
spiritual  benefit,  but  '  all  the  families  of  the  nations '  and  genera- 
tions ytX.  to  come.  The  connexion  between  the  two  parts  of 
the  Psalm  hardl}'  enables  us  to  sa}^  confidently  that  the  glory 
comes  through  the  shame  and  sorrow,  nor  is  the  kind  of  connexion 
between  the  experiences  of  the  individual  and  the  effect  upon 
whole  nations  made  quite  plain.  But  such  a  connexion  there 
plainly  is,  though  the  writer  has  not  dealt  with  the  problem  of 
the  suffering  of  the  righteous  and  the  benefit  conferred  upon 
mankind  as  does  the  author  of  Job  or  the  later  Isaiah.  The 
Psalm  is  several  times  quoted  in  the  N.  T.  Besides  the  '  Eloi '  of 
Matt,  xxvii,  46,  John  xix.  24  claims  the  fulfilment  in  Christ  of 
the  words  describing  the  partition  of  the  garments,  verse  18. 
The  chief  priests  use  verses  7  and  8  for  their  wicked  taunts  ;  verses 
14-16  describe  the  pains  of  crucifixion  ;  and  Heb.  ii.  12  expressly 
quotes  verse  22  as  if  spoken  by  Christ  of  those  whom  He  is  not 
ashamed  to  call  brethren. 

The  title  Aijeleth  hasb>Shaliar,  'The  hind  of  the  morning- 


THE    PSALMS  22.  2-5  119 

O  my  God,  I  cry  in  the  day-time,  but  thou  answerest  not ;  2 

And  in  the  night  season,  and  am  not  silent. 

But  thou  art  holy,  3 

O  thou  that  inhabitest  the  praises  of  Israel. 

Our  fathers  trusted  in  thee :  4 

They  trusted,  and  thou  didst  deliver  them. 

They  cried  unto  thee,  and  were  delivered  :  5 

They  trusted  in  thee,  and  were  not  ashamed. 


dawn,'  is  to  be  understood  as  the  name  of  a  tune,  without  any  of 
the  mystical  or  symbolical  significance  which  both  Jewish  and 
Christian  interpreters  have  from  time  to  time  attached  to  it. 

1.  A  plaintive  question  of  appeal.  The  Psalmist  cannot  believe 
that  He  who  is  still  *  my  God '  has  in  reality  forsaken  him,  yet 
he  is  alone,  helpless,  apparently  deserted.  The  poignancy  of  the 
complaint  expressed  in  the  original  by  four  words  only  in  each 
line  is  but  imperfectly  rendered  in  the  twenty-four  words  of  the 
English  version.  Elot  and  sabachthani  in  the  N.  T.  are  Aramaic 
words,  of  which  EH  and  asabtani  are  the  corresponding  Hebrew. 
Bearing'  indicates  the  loud  shriek  of  extreme  pain, 

2.  Render,  *in  the  night  season,  but  find  no  rest'  (R.V.  marg.), 
i.  e.  obtain  no  answer.  This  rendering  preserves  the  parallelism, 
and  is  less  tame  than  R.  V.  and  am  not  silent. 

3-5.  The  second  strophe  begins  here,  and  contains  the  ground 
of  the  appeal  made  to  God,  as  One  who  might  be  expected  to 
hear  and  answer  the  sufferer.     Render  : — 

'  And  yet — thou  art  holy, 
Thou  that  art  enthroned  on  the  praises  of  Israel.' 

The  bold  and  beautiful  figure  of  the  latter  clause  contains  a  spiritual 
adaptation  of  the  phrase  '  sitteth  between  the  cherubim.'  i  Sam. 
iv.  4.  Praises  is  understood  by  Perowne  to  mean  the  many  acts 
of  deliverance  and  redemption  which  had  called  forth  praise, 
but  a  simpler  and  better  explanation  finds  in  the  word  those  bright 
clouds  of  thanksgiving  offered  by  His  people,  above  which  God 
sits  enthroned  ;  just  as  elsewhere  their  prayers  are  represented  as 
clouds  of  incense  rising  in  His  presence. 

The  meaning  of  the  appeal  of  course  is,  that  the  very  righteous- 
ness and  purity,  the  faithfulness  and  truth  of  the  Divine  character, 
as  shown  by  those  manifestations  to  Israel  which  have  called  forth 
repeated  praises,  constitutes  a  reason  for  this  expostulation  on 
the  part  of  the  righteous  sufferer. 

In  verses  4  and  5  emphasize  'thee'  throughout  :  *  In  thee  did 


I20  THE   PSALMS  22.  6-ji 

6  But  I  am  a  worm,  and  no  man ; 

A  reproach  of  men,  and  despised  of  the  people. 

7  All  they  that  see  me  laugh  me  to  scorn : 

They  shoot  out  the  lip,  they  shake  the  head,  saying, 

8  Commit  f/iyse/f  unto  the  Lord  ;  let  him  deliver  him  : 
Let  him  deliver  him,  seeing  he  delighteth  in  him. 

9  But  thou  art  he  that  took  me  out  of  the  womb  : 

Thou  didst  make  me  trust  wAen  I  was  upon  my  mother's 
breasts. 

10  I  was  cast  upon  thee  from  the  womb : 
Thou  art  my  God  from  my  mother's  belly. 

11  Be  not  far  from  me ;  for  trouble  is  near; 
For  there  is  none  to  help. 


our  fathers  trust  :  unto  thee  did  they  cry.'  They  found  deliver- 
ance, whereas  the  Psalmist  trusts  and  cries,  but  no  help  comes. 

6-8.  worm  represents  an  object  of  contempt,  one  who  is 
helpless  to  resent  or  resist.  It  is  used  in  Isa.  xli.  14;  and  the 
phrase  no  man  recalls  the  strong  expressions  of  Isa,  Hi.  14.  The 
scorn  of  enemies  here  takes  its  worst  form,  that  of  sneering  at 
the  sufferer's  piety  and  trust  in  a  God  who  seems  to  care  nothing 
for  him. 

The  perfect  tense  given  in  R.  V.  marg.  of  verse  8,  '  He  trusted 
in  God,'  is  adopted  in  the  N.  T.,  Matt,  xxvii.  43,  and  in  the  ver- 
sions. But  R.  V.  is  correct,  and  this  rendering  makes  the  taunt 
still  more  bitter,  hi.  '  Roll  it  on  Jehovah  ! '  Kirkpatrick  compares 
Wisd.  of  Sol.  ii.  16-20,  where  despitefulness,  torture,  and  a 
shameful  death  are  to  be  inflicted  upon  the  righteous  man,  to  see 
if  he  is  indeed  God's  son  and  if  God  will  uphold  and  deliver  him 
from  his  adversaries.  The  experience  has  been  repeated  from 
the  time  of  Joseph  onwards,  but  the  passage  referred  to  forms 
one  of  the  most  striking  parallels  to  this  Psalm. 

9-11.  Render,  *  Yea,  but  thou  art  he  who.'  The  Psalmist  takes 
the  taunt  out  of  the  lips  of  his  adversaries,  and  pleads  that  as  God 
has  delighted  in  him  and  shown  him  mercj'  from  infanc3'  onwards. 
He  should  not  forsake  him  now.     In  verse  10  translate ; — 

'  Upon  thee  was  I  cast  from  my  birth  : 
From  my  mother's  womb  thou  art  my  God.' 

Hence  with  confidence  the  Psalmist  can  plead,  Be  not  far  when 
trouble  is  near ;  thou  art  near,  show  thyself,  O  my  God  ! 


THE   PSALMS  22.  12-16  121 

Many  bulls  have  compassed  me  :  ^2 

Strong  bulls  of  Bashan  have  beset  me  round. 

They  gape  upon  me  with  their  mouth,  13 

As  a  ravening  and  a  roaring  lion. 

I  am  poured  out  like  water,  ^4 

And  all  my  bones  are  out  of  joint : 

My  heart  is  like  wax ; 

It  is  melted  in  the  midst  of  my  bowels. 

My  strength  is  dried  up  like  a  potsherd ;  15 

And  my  tongue  cleaveth  to  my  jaws ; 

And  thou  hast  brought  me  into  the  dust  of  death. 

For  dogs  have  compassed  me :  16 

The  assembly  of  evil-doers  have  inclosed  me ; 

They  pierced  my  hands  and  my  feet. 

12,  13.  Brute  strength,  insolence,  irritability  are  represented 
bj'  the  figure  of  the  wild  bulls,  who  gather  and  stare  and  bellow, 
and  are  ready  to  gore  their  victim,  Bashan  was  famous  for  its 
oak  forests,  rich  pastures,  and  breeds  of  cattle.  See  Amos  iv.  i. 
The  bulls  become  lions  in  the  last  clause. 

14,  15.  Contrast  the  weakness  and  helplessness  of  the  sufferer 
who  is  now  at  the  last  gasp.  The  physical  effects  of  his  trouble 
are  graphically  described.  He  is  worn  to  a  skeleton,  his  vital 
strength  is  related,  dissolved;  he  is  in  constant  pain  and  his 
whole  body  parched  with  fever.  Render  in  the  last  line,  '  Thou 
art  laying  me  in  the  dust  of  death.'  For  the  Jew  could  never 
think  of  anything  as  happening  without  God. 

16-18.  He  passes  back  again  from  himself  to  his  foes.  They 
are  like  a  pack  of  savage  dogs,  such  as  scour  all  oriental  cities — 
more  like  wolves  than  the  dogs  we  know  and  cherish — a  surly, 
snarling,  scavenger  tribe,  who  devour  where  they  can  and  worr}' 
all  that  are  helpless  enough  to  be  their  prey. 

Such  are  the  evil-doers  who  gather  round  him.  In  the  latter 
clause  of  verse  16  the  present  Hebrew  text  reads,  *  Like  a  lion,' 
which,  as  it  is,  cannot  stand.  The  Revisers'  marginal  note  explains 
that  their  text  follows  the  versions  in  rendering,  They  pierced. 
The  Targum  combines  the  two  in  its  paraphrase,  '  Biting  like  a 
lion.'  In  verse  17  render,  '  I  can  number  all  my  bones,  while 
these— they  gaze  and  stare  upon  me.'  The  words  that  follow, 
concerning  the  parting  of  the  garments,  are  proverbial  of  brigands 
who  seize  and  spoil  a  traveller,  stripping  him  often  to  the  skin 


122  THE    PSALMS  22.  17-22. 

1 7  I  may  tell  all  my  bones ; 
They  look  and  stare  upon  me : 

18  They  part  my  garments  among  them, 
And  upon  my  vesture  do  they  cast  lots. 

19  But  be  not  thou  far  off,  O  Lord  : 

O  thou  my  succour,  haste  thee  to  help  me. 

20  Deliver  my  soul  from  the  sword ; 

My  darling  from  the  power  of  the  dog. 

21  Save  me  from  the  lion's  mouth ; 

Yea,  from  the  horns  of  the  wild-oxen  thou  hast  answered  me. 

22  I  will  declare  thy  name  unto  my  brethren : 

In  the  midst  of  the  congregation  will  I  praise  thee. 

and  roughly  dividing  his  property  amongst  them.  They  are  not 
to  be  understood  literally  in  the  Psalmist's  case,  any  more  than 
other  expressions  in  this  highly-wrought  description.  The  quota- 
tion in  John  xix.  24  is  most  appropriate  and  touching,  even  if 
the  '■  fulfilment '  of  prophecy  be  not  very  literally  pressed. 

19-21.  be  not  thou  far  oflf:  repeated  from  verse  11  ;  nothing 
matters,  if  thou  be  near.  The  phrase  my  darlingTi  IH.  *  my  only 
one,'  is  to  be  understood  as  synonymous  with  'my  soul'  in  the 
parallel  clause.  Nothing  is  so  precious  as  life,  for  which  a  man 
vj'\\\  give  all  he  has,  Job  ii.  4  ;  compare  our  own  phrase,  '  dear 
life.' 

Some  printing  device  is  almost  necessary  to  bring  out  the  full 
force  of  the  last  word  in  verse  21.  Prom  the  horns  of  the  wild- 
oxen  thou hast  answered  me  I     For  this  is  the  one  thing 

which  through  the  previous  long  and  agonizing  description  has 
been  wanting,  and  the  word  flashes  forth  with  the  brilliance  and 
the  unexpectedness  of  lightning.  He  who  has  been  so  long  silent 
has  spoken  at  last ! 

22.  This  is  the  single  note  of  preparation  given  for  an  otherwise 
most  abrupt  transition  from  the  depths  of  despair  to  the  summit 
of  joy.  We  have  already  noted,  however,  somewhat  similar 
changes  in  Pss.  vi.  2  and  xx,  7,  and  they  are  not  infrequent  in 
the  Psalter. 

This  verse  gives  the  Psalmist's  response  to  God's  manifestation 
of  Himself  in  mercJ^  He  will  publicly  acknowledge  his  great 
Deliverer,  and  far  and  wide  shall  the  effect  of  this  salvation  be 
heard  and  felt.  The  personal  element  is  marked  here  ;  this  verse 
could  not  be  understood  of  a  communit3'.  The  quotation  of  the 
verse  in  Heb.  ii.  12  shows  that  the  writer  of  the  epistle  and  his 


THE    PSALMS  22.  20,-26  123 

Ye  that  fear  the  Lord,  praise  him  ;  2?, 

All  ye  the  seed  of  Jacob,  glorify  him  ; 

And  stand  in  awe  of  him,  all  ye  the  seed  of  Israel. 

For  he  hath  not  despised  nor  abhorred  the  affliction  of  24 

the  afflicted ; 
Neither  hath  he  hid  his  face  from  him ; 
But  when  he  cried  unto  him,  he  heard. 
Of  thee  Cometh  my  praise  in  the  great  congregation  :         25 
I  will  pay  my  vows  before  them  that  fear  him. 
The  meek  shall  eat  and  be  satisfied :  26 

They  shall  praise  the  Lord  that  seek  after  him : 
Let  your  heart  live  for  ever. 

readers  were  quite  prepared  to  find  in  the  words  of  the  Psalm 
the  experiences  of  a  greater  than  David  or  of  any  sufferer  under 
the  old  covenant. 

23.  Here  begins  a  description  of  the  effect  which  will  be 
produced.  The  Psalmist  begins  with  the  inner  circle  of  the  truly 
pious  in  Israel,  passing  on  to  the  nation  at  large,  then  to  other 
nations,  then  to  generations  yet  to  come. 

24.  The  tendency  of  primitiv^e  human  nature  is  to  despise  and 
neglect  the  suffering,  or  even  to  regard  their  affliction  as  a  mark 
of  Divine  anger.  This  is  shown  in  Job  and  Isaiah  and  elsewhere 
in  the  O.  T.  This  Psalm  gives  another  view  of  pain,  and  God's 
pity  towards  the  righteous  sufferer,  though  the  writer  has  not 
worked  out,  perhaps  had  not  thought  out,  his  own  suggestion. 
God's  pity  is  beyond  man's,  and  it  is  His  will  to  bring  good  out 
of  evil. 

25.  Of  here  is  ambiguous:  render,  'From  thee  cometh  my 
praise.'  The  statement  of  A.  V.,  '  my  praise  shall  be  of  thee,'  is 
true  in  itself,  but  it  is  not  the  thought  of  this  verse,  which 
represents  God  as  the  source,  as  He  is  assuredly  the  end,  of 
praise. 

The  phraseology  of  this  and  other  verses  seems  to  imply  that 
the  temple  is  standing  and  its  services  are  being  carried  on. 

26.  A  sacred  meal,  such  as  was  usual  in  connexion  with  the 
offering  of  certain  sacrifices,  e.  g.  the  peace  offerings  in  Lev.  vii. 
15,  16.  The  eating  in  this  case  is  not  for  the  satisfaction  of  bodily 
hunger,  nor  is  it  a  mere  piece  of  ceremonial,  but  a  solemn  euchar- 
istic  meal  in  which  especially'  the  '  humble '  or  '  meek  '  should  join. 
It  implies  a  happy  gathering  of  the  faithful  ones,  Abdiels  constant, 
but  not  solitary  in  their  constancj',  under  the  weight   of  severe 


124  THE    PSALMS  22.  27-30 

27  All  the  ends  of  the  earth  shall  remember  and  turn  unto 

the  Lord  : 
And  all  the  kindreds  of  the  nations  shall  worship  before 
thee. 

28  For  the  kingdom  is  the  Lord's  : 
And  he  is  the  ruler  over  the  nations. 

29  All  the  fat  ones  of  the  earth  shall  eat  and  worship  : 

All  they  that  go  down  to  the  dust  shall  bow  before  him, 
Even  he  that  cannot  keep  his  soul  alive. 

30  A  seed  shall  serve  him ; 

It  shall  be  told  of  the  Lord  unto  the  next  generation. 

oppression.  Those  who  have  been  hungry  are  refreshed  ;  those 
who  have  been  seeking  find  ;  those  who  have  weUnigh  fainted 
revive,  and  their  'hearts  live  for  even' 

The  same  thought  of  a  meal  after  a  sacrifice  is  preserved  in  the 
Christian  Communion  Service. 

27.  The  circle  widens,  the  nations  are  gathered  in.  These  are 
said  to  remember  and  turn  to  the  Lord  ;  xemenitoer  is  not  to 
be  understood  literally,  though  as  Paul  shows  in  Rom.  i,  the 
nations  had  a  knowledge  of  God,  but  lost  it  through  forgetfulness. 
Here  the  word  may  be  understood  more  generally,  in  the  sense 
of  'take  heed.'  The  Psalmist  sees  in  anticipation  the  promise 
made  to  Abraham  (Gen.  xii.  3)  fulfilled. 

28.  It  is  God's  right  to  rule,  but  the  rebellious  need  to  be 
reconciled  and  subdued.  The  remarkable  feature  of  the  Psalm 
is  that  it  gives  a  passing  glimpse  of  the  way  in  which  this  is  to  be 
brought  about  through  a  righteous  Sufferer. 

29.  As  '•  meekness '  is  a  moral  quality  associated  with  poverty, 
so  with  the  *  fatness '  of  prosperity  there  is  constantly  associated 
in  the  Psalms  a  character  of  pride  and  arrogance.  This  verse 
describes  prophetically  the  homage  to  be  paid  to  Jehovah  by  the 
haughty  oppressor. 

The  latter  part  of  the  verse,  Even  he  that  cannot  keep  his  soul 
alive,  is  difficult.  Some  think  it  refers  to  the  poor  and  need}', 
who,  as  well  as  the  rich  and  prosperous,  are  to  join  in  worship. 
But  the  latter  two  lines  of  this  verse  may  emphasize  the  thought 
of  Ps.  xlix,  that  even  the  wealthy  and  strong  must  '  go  down  to 
the  dust'  and  'cannot  keep  their  souls  alive,'  and  must  bow  in 
submission  to  God.  The  LXX  and  some  modern  interpreters 
join  the  last  clause  of  this  verse  with  the  next. 

30.  The  seed  mentioned   here  refers  to  the  generation  then 


THE    PSALMS  22.  31—23.  1  125 

They  shall  come  and  shall  declare  his  righteousness  3 1 

Unto  a  people  that  shall  be  born,  that  he  hath  done  it. 

A  Psalm  of  David.  23 

The  Lord  is  my  shepherd ;  I  shall  not  want.  i 

living,  the  latter  clause  of  this  verse  to  the  next  following,  while 
the  last  verse  points  to  others  yet  to  come. 

31.  that  lie  hath  done  it :  a  statement  impressive  in  its  very 
vagueness.  Done  what  ?  The  deliverance  of  this  sufferer,  however 
notable  and  significant,  is  only  an  indication  of  a  greater  work 
which  is  not  specified,  a  Divine  purpose  of  salvation  only  hinted 
at.  The  new  song  which  will  be  sung  by  coming  generations 
cannot  as  yet  be  conceived,  as  the  Divine  work  of  bringing  glory 
through  suffering  and  accomplishing  salvation  through  pain  and 
sorrow  is  seen  but  dimly  by  the  light  of  this  Psalm.  Yet  it  sheds 
a  light  of  its  own,  and,  as  Prof.  Kirkpatrick  says,  '  It  is  a  parable 
of  the  history  of  the  individual,  of  Israel,  of  the  Church,  of  the 
world.' 

Psalm  XXIII.     The  Good  Shepherd. 

The  charm  of  this  Psalm  of  Psalms  lies  in  its  combined  simplicity 
of  diction,  beauty  of  conception,  and  wealth  of  religious  significance. 
These  are  blended  with  an  art  that  is  beyond  art,  attainable  only  by 
the  trustful  human  spirit  guided  by  the  Divine.  The  chief  figure  in 
the  picture,  that  of  the  shepherd,  is  one  which  appeals  to  all  ages 
and  all  nations,  though  it  suggests  itself  most  naturally  to  dwellers 
in  the  pastoral  countries  of  the  East.  The  secondary  metaphor 
in  verse  5,  that  of  the  host  at  the  banquet  of  life,  must  not  be 
slighted,  though  it  is  inevitably  thrown  into  the  background  by 
the  superior  beauty  and  suggestiveness  of  the  primary  thought. 
The  meaning  and  helpfulness  of  this  perfect  little  Psalm  can  never 
be  exhausted  so  long  as  men,  like  sheep,  wander  and  need  guid- 
ance, and  so  long  as  they  learn  to  find  it  in  God  their  Shepherd. 

The  Psalm  is  inseparably  associated  with  the  name  of  David, 
whose  early  experiences  may  well  have  given  rise  in  later  life  to 
thoughts  such  as  these.  But  no  youth  could  write  it,  and  many 
modern  commentators  refuse  to  believe  that  it  belongs  to  the 
youth  of  a  nation.  A  long  experience  lies  behind  it,  of  need  and 
trouble,  as  well  as  of  comfort  and  help.  The  fashion  prevailing 
in  some  quarters  of  understanding  the  '  I  '^  of  this  Psalm  as  the 
community  of  Israel  robs  it  of  a  large  portion  of  its  meaning, 
though  the  idea  of  Jehovah  as  Shepherd  of  Israel  obtains  in  the 
Asaphic  Psalms — compare  Ixxx.  i  and  Ixxvii.  20— and  in  certain 
passages  of  the  prophets.  But  the  tenderly  personal  note  must 
not  be  lost  from  the  music  of  this  Psalm,  whilst  the  flock  of  the 


126  THE   PSALMS  23.  2,3 

2  He  maketh  me  to  lie  down  in  green  pastures : 
He  leadeth  me  beside  the  still  waters. 

3  He  restoreth  my  soul : 

He  guideth   me  in  the  paths  of  righteousness  for  his 
name's  sake. 

Church  in  all  ages  may  gain  from  it  their  own  meed  of  encourage- 
ment and  comfort.  The  use  of  the  Psalm  by  the  saints  of  all 
generations,  and  the  almost  innumerable  metrical  renderings  and 
paraphrases  it  has  received  in  various  languages,  need  only  be 
mentioned  to  show  its  value. 

1.  In  the  O.  T.  the  shepherd  is  essentially  the  ruler.  David  is 
appointed  to  '  feed '  God's  people,  2  Sam.  vii.  7,  and  a  greater 
David  in  Ezek.  xxxiv.  23  is  a  shepherd  also.  Whilst  the  tenderness 
of  the  figure  suggested  by  the  close  personal  care  of  the  shepherd 
over  his  sheep  is  not  to  be  forgotten,  the  wisdom  and  strength 
and  authority  of  the  true  Leader  of  men  is  its  prominent  element. 
So  when  Christ  claimed  to  be  the  Good  Shepherd,  whilst  declaring 
his  readiness  to  lay  down  his  life  for  the  sheep,  he  laid  stress 
upon  his  authority. 

Only  when  Jehovah  is  their  Shepherd  can  men  dream  of  saying, 
Z  shall  not  want.  The  P. B.V.,  'Therefore  can  I  lack  nothing,' 
reminds  of  the  promise  concerning  Canaan  in  Deut.  viii.  9,  which 
Moses  claims  to  have  been  fulfilled  even  in  the  wilderness,  '  Thou 
hast  lacked  nothing,'  Deut.  ii.  7. 

2.  The  Psalmist  follows  the  flock  through  varied  scenes.  In 
the  heat  of  the  day  they  rest  in  cool  green  meadows — 'where 
thou  makest  thy  flock  to  rest  at  noon,'  Canticles  i.  7— by  the  water- 
courses which  nourish  the  grass,  and  near  which  are  the  natural 
resting-places  for  man  and  beast.  Render,  '  And  by  the  still 
waters  he  doth  guide  me.'  Menucha/i,  a  resting-place,  was  what 
Israel  sought  in  the  wilderness,  and  was  to  find  in  the  Promised 
Land.  They  sought  it  for  many  a  long  day  after  entering  Canaan, 
but  Joshua  did  not  give  it  td-  them,  and  when  Ps.  xcv  was  written 
they  had  not  found  it.  This  Psalmist,  however,  with  all  who 
believe,  had  '  entered  into  rest.' 

3.  Ke  restoreth,  not  brings  back  as  a  wanderer  from  the  right 
path,  but  revives  the  weary  and  fainting  who  need  refreshment. 
Compare  xix.  7. 

The  phrase  paths  of  rig-hteousness  does  not  mean  'straight 
paths,'  but  retains  its  moral  meaning.  The  natural  and  the  spiritual, 
the  symbol  and  the  thing  symbolized,  are  blended  in  the  Psalm,  as 
usually  in  Hebrew  poetry.  Por  his  name's  sake  God  does  many 
things  ;  that  He  may  be  true  to  His  own  character,  and  because 
He  cannot  deny  Himself.     He  guards  and  helps  His  people  for 


THE   PSALMS   23.  4,  5  127 

Yea,  though  I  walk  through  the  valley  of  the  shadow  of  4 

death, 
I  will  fear  no  evil ;  for  thou  art  with  me : 
Thy  rod  and  thy  staff,  they  comfort  me. 
Thou  preparest  a  table  before  me  in  the  presence  of  5 

mine  enemies : 
Thou  hast  anointed  my  head  with  oil ;  my  cup  runneth 

over. 

their  own  sakes  ;  but  they  have  a  stronger  security  to  rely  upon 
than  anything  earthly  can  give,  in  God's  fidelity  to  His  own 
immutable  nature  and  purpose. 

4.  The  word  tsalmaveth,  translated  valley  of  the  shadow  of 
death,  is  only  in  appearance  derived  from  the  word  '  death '  ; 
etymologically  it  means  no  more  than  R.  V,  marg.  '  deep  gloom.' 
The  familiar  rendering,  however,  is  not  only  picturesque,  but  has 
interwoven  itself  into  our  language  ;  none  the  less  it  is  somewhat 
to  be  regretted  that  the  narrower  meaning  which  associates  the 
gloomy  and  dangerous  ravine  with  death  should  exclusively 
prevail,  and  it  would  be  well  to  keep  as  an  alternative  translation, 
'  the  valley  of  the  dark  shadow.' 

The  rod  and  staff  are  sometimes  regarded  as  two  names  for 
one  object,  used  for  different  purposes.  The  more  natural  meaning 
of  the  double  phrase  is,  however,  the  more  correct.  The  shepherd 
carries  both  a  shebet,  a  kind  of  club  or  mace  slung  by  the  side  and 
used  as  an  offensive  weapon  when  needed,  and  a  niish^eneth,  a 
long  straight  pole  carried  in  the  hand  and  used  for  climbing,  for 
support,  and  for  helping  the  sheep  in  various  ways.  Render : — 
'  Thy  rod  and  thy  staff— they  will  comfort  me  ! ' 

5.  Much  is  gained,  even  from  the  point  of  view  of  art,  by 
this  additional  figure  to  describe  God's  goodness  and  man's  ground 
of  trust  and  confidence.  Provision  for  needs,  festive  rejoicing, 
the  bestowment  of  dignity,  abounding  grace  more  than  sufficient 
for  all  contingencies — such  are  the  suggestions  of  this  verse,  in 
which  the  Psalmist  is  a  guest  at  the  banquet  of  life,  with  Jehovah 
for  a  bountiful  Host.  Fresh  and  fragrant  oil,  freely  used  in  the 
East  as  a  cosmetic,  is  associated  always  with  festal  occasions,  and 
the  neglect  to  provide  it  is  somewhat  of  a  slight  on  the  part  of 
a  host  who  is  entertaining  guests,  see  Luke  vii.  46.  The  last 
clause  runs  literally,  '  My  cup — abundance  ! ' 

Enemies  lurk  in  the  background.  As  the  sheep  will  have  sooner 
or  later  to  pass  through  the  dark  and  perilous  glen,  so  the  guest 
at  the  feast  sees  dimly  visible  beyond  the  lamps  and  the  silver 


128  THE   PSALMS  23.  6—24.  i 

6  Surely  goodness  and  mercy  shall  follow  me  all  the  days 
of  my  hfe : 
And  I  will  dwell  in  the  house  of  the  Lord  for  ever. 

24  A  Psalm  of  David. 

I  The  earth  is  the  Lord's,  and  the  fulness  thereof; 
The  world,  and  they  that  dwell  therein. 

cups  faces  of  foes  full  of  hatred  and  threatening  of  aspect.     But 
he  fears  them  not.     In  the  world,  tribulation  :  in  Me,  peace. 

6.  The  last  verse  shows  how  assured  is  the  confidence  of  one 
of  the  guests  in  God's  house.  The  opening  word  is  sometimes 
affirmative,  as  in  R.V.  text  Surely,  sometimes  restrictive,  as  in 
marg.  'Only.'  It  might  be  paraphrased,  'This  one  thing  remains 
true,  that'  goodness — that  is,  the  provision  of  all  good  things 
needed,  and  uiercy — that  is,  the  bestowal  of  far  more  than  is  de- 
served, are  to  be  two  guardian  angels  all  through  the  Psalmist's  life, 
inasmuch  as  all  his  course  will  only  be  a  dwelling  in  one  or  other 
of  the  many  mansions  of  the  Great  King.  There  is  no  direct 
allusion  to  a  future  life  in  the  words  for  ever,  neither  is  there 
any  exclusion  of  the  thought.  Those  who  have  learned  the  lessons 
of  the  N.  T.  are  assured  that  all  who  are  under  the  guidance  of 
the  Good  Shepherd  and  in  the  care  of  the  Divine  Host  now 
will  be  His  'for  length  of  days'  (R.V.  marg.),  when  days  and 
nights  are  known  no  more. 

Psalm  XXIV.     The  Palace  of  the  King  of  Glory. 

Shortly  after  the  famous  stronghold  of  Zion  had  been  taken 
from  the  Jebusites  David  brought  into  that  which  came  to  be 
known  as  '  the  city  of  David  '  the  Ark  of  the  Covenant  which  had 
been  resting  in  the  house  of  Obed-edom.  It  was  an  occasion 
of  great  rejoicing,  partly  national,  partly  religious,  i  Chron.  xv 
gives  an  account  of  the  event  as  it  loomed  in  the  eyes  of  later 
generations  across  the  gulf  of  many  centuries  :  this  Psalm  was  in 
all  probability  composed  for  the  solemn  and  glorious  occasion. 
It  is  worthy  of  even  such  high  use.  Its  tone  throughout  is  stately 
and  majestic,  while  its  poetical  fire,  its  high  ethical  standard,  and 
its  concentrated  force  in  celebrating  the  glory  of  the  only  abiding 
King,  combine  to  distinguish  it  as  one  of  the  noblest  of  the  Psalms. 

It  has  been  described  as  one,  and  one  it  is  in  its  present  form, 
whatever  its  history.  It  is  not  surprising,  however,  that  in  an 
age  of  analysis  the  two  parts  of  which  it  obviously  consists  should 
be  regarded  as  originally  separate  compositions.  Verses  7-10  are 
viewed  by  many  as  the  whole  or  a  fragment  of  an  ancient  hymn, 


THE   PSALMS  24.  2,  3  129 

For  he  hath  founded  it  upon  the  seas, 

And  established  it  upon  the  floods. 

Who  shall  ascend  into  the  hill  of  the  Lord  ? 

to  which  some  later  writer  has  given  a  not  inappropriate  setting. 
It  may  be  so.  The  transition  from  verse  6  to  7  is  certainly 
abrupt,  and  it  marks  a  change  of  metre  as  well  as  of  style.  Hence, 
as  in  xix,  two  pens  may  have  been  at  work.  On  the  other  hand, 
abrupt  transitions  are  not  infrequent  in  the  Psalter,  and  the  mark 
of  a  later  age  is  not  impressed  on  verses  1-6  as  on  xix.  7-14. 
But  Delitzsch  is  much  better  assured  of  the  unity  of  Ps.  xix 
than  of  this.  Interpreters  are  naturally  divided  upon  a  point 
in  deciding  which  subjective  considerations  so  largely  prevail. 

The  Psalm  gains  every  way  if  it  be  read  as  it  would  be  anti- 
phonally  rendered  by  a  choir.  See  Stanley,  Jewish  Churchy  ii.  72. 
Verses  i  and  2  would  form  a  chorus  sung  by  the  procession  as  it 
was  winding  up  the  hill  towards  the  gates  of  the  ancient  fortress. 
One  voice,  or  group  of  voices,  asks  the  question  in  verse  3, 
answered  by  others  in  4  and  5,  whilst  all  join  together  in  chanting 
verse  6.  As  the  throng  gathers  at  the  entrance  of  the  citadel, 
some  of  the  priests  and  Levites  have  entered  to  take  possession  in 
the  name  of  the  Lord.  A  single  voice,  or  one  part  of  the  choir, 
sounds  out  the  summons  of  verse  7  :  '  Lift  up  your  heads,  O  ye 
gates;  and  the  King  of  glory  shall  come  in,'  while  the  warders 
from  within  challenge  in  return,  *  Who  is  the  King  of  glory  • ' 
A  triumphant  answer  echoes  back  from  the  multitude  outside, 
'Yahweh  Sabaoth,  He  is  King  of  glory.'  Again  the  summons, 
the  challenge,  and  the  overmastering  shout  in  reply  ;  then  the 
venerable  portal  is  entered,  and  the  city  henceforth  is  hallowed  as 
the  dwelling-place  of  the  great  King. 

The  Psalm  is  used  in  the  Greek  Church  at  the  festival  attending 
a  church  dedication,  and  in  the  Church  of  England  on  Ascension 
Day. 

1,  2.  The  sovereignty  of  the  whole  earth  belongs  to  Him  who 
made  it.  The  Hebrew  emphasizes  not  'earth  '  and  'world,'  but 
Jehovah.  Render  therefore,  'Jehovah's  is  the  earth  and  the 
fulness  thereof  .  .  .  For  it  is  He  who  hath  founded  it,'  &c.  The 
word  translated  '  world '  means  the  habitable  earth,  with  special 
reference  to  human  life  :  '  fulness  '  means  all  that  fills  it,  as  P.B.  V. 
'all  that  therein  is'  he  hath  fonnded  it  upon  the  seas,  &c.  To 
whom  should  it  belong  but  to  its  Creator?  The  idea  of  the  world 
resting  upon  the  waters  is  poetical  in  form,  but  it  fairly  represents 
popular  Hebrew  ideas,  see  Gen.  i.  6,  vii.  11  ;  Ps.  cxxxvi.  6,  and  the 
well-known  phrase  of  the  second  commandment,  '  the  water  under 
the  earth,' 

3,  4.  Who  shall  ascend,  &c.  These  questions  have  already  been 

K 


I30  THE   PSALMS  24.  4-6 

And  who  shall  stand  in  his  holy  place  ? 

4  He  that  hath  clean  hands,  and  a  pure  heart ; 
Who  hath  not  lifted  up  his  soul  unto  vanity, 
And  hath  not  sworn  deceitfully. 

5  He  shall  receive  a  blessing  from  the  Lord, 
And  righteousness  from  the  God  of  his  salvation. 

6  This  is  the  generation  of  them  that  seek  after  him, 
That  seek  thy  face,  O  6^^^^/ Jacob.  [Selah 

asked  in  Ps.  xv,  but  they  are  closely  connected  here  with  the 
context,  both  before  and  after.  The  God  of  the  whole  earth  may 
not  be  lightly  approached,  yet  entrance  is  shortly  to  be  sought 
into  that  holy  dwelling-place  of  His,  symbolized  by  the  establishing 
of  the  sacred  ark  upon  Mount  Zion.  Most  appropriately  therefore 
is  again  the  question  asked,  Who  may  be  a  guest  of  the  Most 
High  God  ? 

The  answer  is  in  substance  the  same  as  that  given  in  Ps.  xv, 
and  reaffirms  the  high  ethical  character  of  the  Jewish  religion. 
But  the  phraseology  here  is  somewhat  more  general  and  more 
spiritual  than  in  the  earlier  Psalm  ;  character  and  actions  alike 
are  to  be  pure  in  both  cases,  but  the  stress  lies  in  the  earlier 
Psalm  upon  acts,  as  here  upon  character. 

Four  clauses  describe  the  needful  characteristics :  the  first, 
He  tliat  hatli  clean  hands,  refers  to  actions,  chiefly  of  violence 
and  dishonesty  ;  the  last,  to  words  of  fraud  and  perjury.  The 
two  middle  phrases  refer  to  inward  purity,  to  desires  and  motives 
such  as  the  outward  law  cannot  touch.  To  '  lift  up  the  soul  unto 
vanity,'  means  to  allow  the  affections  to  go  forth  to  that  which  is 
empty,  useless,  transitory  and  therefore  evil,  as  compared  with 
devotion  to  the  Eternal  and  Most  Holy  God.  Some  find  a  refer- 
ence here  to  idolatry  :  doubtless  the  actual  worship  of  idols  was 
a  glaring  instance  of  what  is  here  condemned,  but  the  compre- 
hensive description  of  this  cfeuse  includes  more  than  overt  apostasy 
from  Jehovah. 

5,  6.  Righteousness  is  both  a  condition  and  result  of  blessing. 
A  man  must  cleanse  himself  so  far  as  in  him  lies  before  God  will 
receive  him  :  then  the  blessing  bestowed  consists  mainly  in  the 
power  given  to  attain  a  deeper  and  more  abiding  purity.  It  is 
natural  to  compare  the  fourth  beatitude :  those  who  hunger  for 
righteousness  are  satisfied  with  its  fullness. 

Render,  '  Such  is  the  generation,'  &c.,  the  idiomatic  rendering 
of  the  Hebrew  This.  These  words  recall  the  sixth  beatitude  : 
as  those  who  love  puritj'  shall  see  God,  so  those  who  desire  to 
see  the  face  of  God  shall  be  cleansed  indeed.     There  is  no  very 


THE  PSALMS  24.  7-10  131 

Lift  up  your  heads,  O  ye  gates  ; 

And  be  ye  lift  up,  ye  everlasting  doors : 

And  the  King  of  glory  shall  come  in. 

Who  is  the  King  of  glory  ? 

The  Lord  strong  and  mighty, 

The  Lord  mighty  in  battle. 

Lift  up  your  heads,  O  ye  gates  ; 

Yea,  lift  them  up,  ye  everlasting  doors : 

And  the  King  of  glory  shall  come  in. 

Who  is  this  King  of  glory  ? 

The  Lord  of  hosts. 

He  is  the  King  of  glory.  [Selah 

marked  distinction  between  the  synonyms  darash,  seek  after,  and 
biqqeshy  seek:  though  the  latter  implies  rather  the  inquiry  of 
one  who  does  not  know,  and  the  former  the  pursuit  of  one  who 
knows  and  desires  to  attain. 

In  the  last  clause  of  verse  6,  A.  V.  follows  the  Hebrew,  'O 
Jacob '  ;  but  the  meaning  of  the  received  text  must  be,  *  These 
are  they  who  seek  thy  face,  even  Jacob,'  i.e.  these  are  the  true 
Israel.  This  is  very  unsatisfactory,  and  R.  V.  is  unquestionably 
right  in  reading  with  the  chief  versions,  '  O  God  of  Jacob.' 

7,  8.  A  bold  apostrophe.  The  hoary  gates  of  the  old  heathen 
fortress  are  represented  as  unwilling  to  receive  the  conquering 
Lord,  or  the  highest  of  them  is  too  low  for  His  standard  to  pass 
under.  They  are  to  bow  themselves  down,  or  hft  themselves  up, 
to  make  themselves  higher  and  wider — in  every  way  to  make  room 
for  Him  who  comes  to  reign  in  Jerusalem.  Render,  with  R.  V. 
marg.,  'Ye  ancient  doors,'  lit.  'gates  of  old,'  whose  history 
stretches  into  the  past,  far  and  dim  ;  the  word  everlastingr, 
though  used  in  permissible  hyperbole,  carries  with  it  other  as- 
sociations. 

Kingr  of  glory:    i.e.   the   king  who   is    glorious,   who  does 
glorious  things  and  who  rules  over  a  glorious  kingdom. 

The  warders  at  the  gates  ask  for  the  credentials  of  those  who 
boldly  throw  down  this  challenge.  What  is  the  name,  what  the 
claim  to  authority  of  him  who  seeks  to  enter  ?  The  answer  first 
given  is  that  Yahweh,who  is  a  '  mighty  hero,'  has  already  proved 
His  strength  in  granting  victory  to  His  servant  David  and  has 
come  to  claim  His  own. 

9,  10.  These  verses  repeat  the  former  colloquy,  with  one 
marked  variation.     The  name  Yahweh   Tsebaoth,  XiOBD  of  hosts,  , 

K  2 


132  THE   PSALMS  25.  i,  2 

25  A  Psalm  of  David. 

1  Unto  thee,  O  Lord,  do  I  lift  up  my  soul. 

2  O  my  God,  in  thee  have  I  trusted, 

meets  us  here  for  the  first  time.  The  subject  of  the  names  of  God 
is  briefly  discussed  in  a  detached  note.  p.  358,  and  more  fully  in  the 
Introd.  to  vol.  ii  of  this  work.  Here  it  may  be  said  that  the 
connotation  of  this  high  title  varies  somewhat  with  the  context, 
the  emphasis  lying  sometimes  upon  God's  power  on  earth,  some- 
times on  His  majesty  as  Ruler  of  the  hosts  of  heaven.  The  fuller 
and  probably  the  original  form  is  Yahweh,  God  of  Hosts,  but 
whether  angels  or  stars  or  armies  of  men  be  more  particularly 
thought  of,  this  name  of  God  designates  Him  as  All-Sovereign, 
Ruler  of  created  being.  Hence  the  Greek  translation,  Ruler  of 
all ;  compare  the  opening  phrase  of  the  Apostles'  Creed,  *  God 
Almighty,  Maker  of  heaven  and  earth.' 

There  is  therefore  a  distinct  addition  made  in  this  verse  to  the 
claims  of  the  Conqueror  who  is  about  to  enter — symbolically, 
through  the  presence  of  the  ark — into  that  stronghold  of  Zion, 
which  is  henceforth  to  be  known  not  as  the  city  of  David,  but  as 
the  city  of  the  great  King.  *  This  is  my  resting  place  for  ever  : 
here  will  I  dwell ;  for  I  have  desired  it '  (Ps.  cxxxii.  14). 

Psalm  XXV.     An  Alphabet  of  Devout  Prayers. 

This  Psalm  is  an  acrostic,  somewhat  irregularly  constnicted. 
The  rule  that  each  verse  of  two  lines  should  begin  with  a  letter 
of  the  alphabet  is  broken  at  the  second  verse— though  this  could 
easily  be  remedied  by  a  slight  rearrangement  of  words— also  at 
the  Vav  verse,  where  again  a  slight  reconstruction  could  easily 
be  made.  The  letter  Qoph  is  wanting  to  verse  18  where  it  would 
be  expected,  and  two  succeeding  verses  begin  with  ResJi,  while 
an  additional  verse  beginning  with  Pe  is  found  at  the  end,  after 
the  scheme  is  complete.  It  is  curious,  in  comparing  the  alpha- 
betical Psalms,  to  find  the  Same  dropping  of  Vav  in  Ps.  xxxiv,  a 
somewhat  similar  confusion  in  the  case  of  Qoph  and  Resh  in 
Pss.  ix,  X  and  xxxvii,  and  a  similarly  appended  Pe  verse  in  Ps.  xxxiv. 
Attempts  have  been  made  to  explain  these  irregularities.  Dr.  King 
thinks  that  in  the  earlier  of  the  alphabetical  Psalms  the  order  of 
the  letters  was  not  altogether  fixed  as  we  have  it  now,  while  the 
appended  verses  in  this  Psalm  and  Ps.  xxxiv  have  been  viewed  as 
liturgical  additions,  giving  a  hint  of  the  author's  name,  Pedaliah, 
beginning  with  the  superfluous  letter  !  It  is  clearly  established 
that  XXV  and  xxxiv  are  companion  Psalms,  probably  by  the  same 
author.  Further  than  this  it  is  impossible  to  go  at  present.  The 
conjectures   that   are   being   made   on    this   subject   as   tentative 


THE   PSALMS  25.  3  133 

Let  me  not  be  ashamed ; 

Let  not  mine  enemies  triumph  over  me. 

Yea,  none  that  wait  on  thee  shall  be  ashamed : 

hypotheses  may  lead  to  some  assured  result,  but  as  yet  they  have 
not  done  so. 

In  substance,  the  Psalm  is  meditative,  humble,  prayerful. 
Praise  predominates  in  its  companion,  Ps.  xxxiv.  No  distinct 
order  of  thought  can  be  traced  out,  nor  can  this  be  expected  in  an 
acrostic,  though  some  think  that  the  Psalm  begins  (1-7)  with 
prayer  and  ends  with  it  (15-21),  while  meditation  predominates 
between  (8-14).  Dr.  King  considers  that  the  Psalm  was  originally 
written  in  two  halves,  like  the  acrostic  in  Pss.  cxi  and  cxii,  on 
a  scale  of  ten  letters,  the  number  of  the  Covenant,  and  that  in  this 
Psalm  the  former  half  refers  directly  to  God,  the  latter  deals  with 
the  duty  of  man  to  man.  But  these  attempts,  while  interesting  in 
themselves,  tend,  like  those  of  the  Hebrew  metrists,  to  over- 
systematization. 

There  is  nothing  definite  in  the  Psalm  to  indicate  date.  If  the 
last  verse  be  not  a  liturgical  addition,  it  points  to  the  period  of 
the  Exile.  The  Psalm  can  hardly  be  earlier  than  the  time  of  the 
later  Monarchy,  and  we  shall  probably  not  be  far  wrong  if,  with 
Ewald,  we  find  in  it  the  reflections  and  pleadings  of  an  exile  in 
Babylon  who  has  already  partly  learned  the  lessons  God  was 
teaching  His  people,   of  resignation  and  trust. 

1.  The  best  security  against  ^  lifting  up  the  soul  to  vanitj' '  (xxiv. 
4)  is  to  raise  it  perpetually  Godward  in  aspiration  and  prayer. 

'  It  is  to  Thee,  Jehovah,  that  I  Hft  my  soul.' 

This  opening  key-note  of  the  Psalm  is  well  preserved  throughout. 
Whether  the  Psalmist  is  praying  or  pondering,  he  is  setting  his 
affection  on  things  above,  not  on  things  on  the  earth. 

The  first  verse  is  short  of  a  line,  according  to  the  scheme  of 
composition,  and  it  has  been  proposed  to  relieve  verse  5  of  a 
redundant  line,  and  remove — with  some  MSS.  of  the  LXX — the 
exclamation  '  O  my  God  '  from  the  second  verse,  where  it  disturbs 
the  alphabetic  regularity.  The  latter  half  of  this  verse  would 
then  read — 

'  For  Thee,  O  my  God,  do  I  wait  all  the  da}'.' 

2.  This  verse  would  open  with  the  letter  Beth^  in  thee  have  I 
trusted,  &c.  The  enemies  in  this  case  have  the  upper  hand,  and 
the  danger  is  lest  the  pious  and  lawful  hopes  of  the  truly  devout 
should  be  overthrown  and  the  godly  as  such  be  put  to  shame. 
Against  this  the  Psalmist  prays. 

3.  Here  he  reassures  his  own  soul.  It  cannot  be  that  he  and 
those  who  with  him  wait  on  Jehovah  should  be  disappointed  and 


134  THE   PSALMS  25.  4-7 

They  shall  be  ashamed  that  deal  treacherously  without 
cause. 

4  Shew  me  thy  ways,  O  Lord  ; 
Teach  me  thy  paths. 

5  Guide  me  in  thy  truth,  and  teach  me  ; 
For  thou  art  the  God  of  my  salvation  ; 
On  thee  do  I  wait  all  the  day. 

6  Remember,  O  Lord,  thy  tender  mercies  and  thy  loving- 

kindnesses  ; 
For  they  have  been  ever  of  old. 

7  Remember  not  the  sins  of  my  youth,  nor  my  transgres- 

sions : 
According  to  thy  lovingkindness  remember  thou  me, 
For  thy  goodness'  sake,  O  Lord. 

overthrown.  For  it  is  not  a  personal  question,  the  sore  trouble 
with  him  is  in  relation  to  those  who  deal  treacherously,  who  are 
traitors  to  God  and  faithless  to  their  fellow  men,  and  who  act  thus 
without  cause,  lightly  and  wantonly  disregarding  the  most  sacred 
ties — it  is  these  who  shall  surely  incur  the  confusion  they  would 
fain  inflict  on  others. 

4.  Shew  me  thy  ways,  &c.  The  Psalmist  now  illustrates  what 
is  meant  by  waiting  on  God  and  lifting  the  soul  to  Him.  He  asks 
that  he  may  know  more  fully  and  walk  more  steadily  in  God's 
ways— i.  e.  understand  the  Divine  meaning  and  purposes  in  the 
events  of  his  own  life  and  those  happening  around  him,  so  that 
he  may  order  his  own  conduct  accordingl}'. 

5.  Guide  me  in  thy  truth  seems  to  anticipate  the  promises 
concerning  the  Holy  Spirit  (John  xvi.  13;  compare  xvii.  17); 
but  the  emphasis  in  the  O.  T,  lies  upon  conduct  rather  than 
knowledge,  and  the  Psalmist's  appeal  is  rather  that  God,  in  the 
exercise  of  that  'faithfulness  and  truth'  which  belongs  to  Him, 
would  give  the  practical  guidance  which  is  needed  in  difficulty. 
This  is  borne  out  b}'  the  parallel  phrase,  God  of  my  salvation. 

If  the  last  line  of  this  verse  is  not  transferred  to  complete  verse  i, 
we  may  suppose  that  a  clause  has  been  lost  from  the  text  which 
would  furnisli  a  Vav  verse  in  its  own  place. 

6.  The  appeal  to  past  history  is  common  in  the  Psalms  and 
prophets,  especially  about  the  time  of  the  Exile  in  Babylon. 

7.  If  the  time  and  circumstances  of  composition  be  as  suggested, 
the  Psalmist  will   throughout  be  thinking  of  tJic  community  as 


THE   PSALMS  25.  S-ia  135 

Good  and  upright  is  the  Lord  : 

Therefore  will  he  instruct  sinners  in  the  way. 

The  meek  will  he  guide  in  judgement : 

And  the  meek  will  he  teach  his  way. 

All  the  paths  of  the  Lord  are  lovingkindness  and  truth 

Unto  such  as  keep  his  covenant  and  his  testimonies. 

For  thy  name's  sake,  O  Lord, 

Pardon  mine  iniquity,  for  it  is  great. 

What  man  is  he  that  feareth  the  Lord  ? 

Him  shall  he  instruct  in  the  way  that  he  shall  choose. 

well  as  of  himself :  this  is  shown  by  verse  22.  Hence  this  con- 
fession of  sin  is  more  than  personal.  The  tenderness  and  contrition 
of  spirit,  which  make  this  reference  to  the  sins  of  xny  youth 
very  touching,  includes  a  sense  of  national  frailty  and  error  such 
as  at  one  time  Israel  was  far  from  showing. 

8-10.  *  Mercy  and  goodness '  are  the  attributes  on  which  the 
sinner  relies  for  pardon,  as  in  the  last  verse  ;  here  goodness  is 
joined  with  uprightness,  as  it  is  remembered  that  the  offender 
needs  instruction  and  discipline,  that  he  may  reform  and  walk  in 
the  right  way.  But  only  tlie  zueek — those  who  have  learned  the 
lessons  of  aflSiction  and  are  humbly  willing  to  learn — can  be  so 
taught  and  guided.  Judgfemeiit  means  the  principle  of  right 
carried  out  in  practice.  It  is  characteristic  of  God,  but  may  be 
learned  by  man  in  his  measure.  The  close  connexion  between 
God's  ways  and  man's  effort  is  brought  out  in  the  tenth  verse. 
If  man  will  faithfully  keep  His  covenant,  he  will  find  that  the 
events  of  life  are  ordered  for  him  in  mercy  and  truth,  or  kindness 
and  fidelity. 

11.  A  further  confession,  probably  to  be  viewed  as  national. 
The  greatness  of  the  iniquity  makes  the  sinner  to  feel  more  deeply 
the  direness  of  his  need.  All  sins,  even  the  more  venial,  need 
pardon,  but  some  of  these,  so  far  from  driving  a  man  to  God  in 
despair,  are  hardly  felt  to  be  sins  at  all.  None  the  less,  it  argues 
great  faith  in  God  for  a  great  sinner  to  go  to  Him  for  forgiveness. 
The  callous  offender  feels  that  his  repeated  transgressions  have 
shut  him  out  from  mercy  ;  the  contrite  and  trustful  prays.  Pardon 
mine  iniquity,  for  it  is  g^eat. 

12.  in  the  way  that  he  shall  choose:  i.e.  God  will  teach  the 
man  how  to  walk  in  that  right  way,  which  through  grace  he  has 
learned  to  prefer  and  make  his  ov^^n.  The  good  man's  service  of 
God  is  perfect  freedom,  he  chooses  the  path  willingly  and  gladly, 
but  needs  instruction.     The  Psalmist  says  he  shall  not  lack  it. 


136  THE   PSALMS  25.  13-17 

13  His  soul  shall  dwell  at  ease ; 

And  his  seed  shall  inherit  the  land. 
M  The  secret  of  the  Lord  is  with  them  that  fear  him ; 

And  he  will  shew  them  his  covenant. 

15  Mine  eyes  are  ever  toward  the  Lord  ; 
For  he  shall  pluck  my  feet  out  of  the  net. 

16  Turn  thee  unto  me,  and  have  mercy  upon  me ; 
For  I  am  desolate  and  afflicted. 

17  The  troubles  of  my  heart  are  enlarged : 
O  bring  thou  me  out  of  my  distresses. 


13.  Material  prosperity  is  intended  here,  according  to  the  often 
repeated  promises  of  the  old  covenant.  Compare  especially  the 
teaching  of  the  Book  of  Proverbs. 

14.  Compare  again  Prov.  iii.  32,  '  His  secret  is  with  the 
righteous.'  Such  a  phrase  by  itself — and  it  is  by  no  means 
solitary — is  sufficient  to  show  that  the  writers  in  Proverbs  were 
not,  as  is  sometimes  said,  wholly  occupied  with  the  good  things 
of  this  life  and  actuated  by  utilitarian  motives.  The  intimate 
fellowship  implied  by  the  striking  phrase  *  the  secret  of  Jehovah  ' 
is  amongst  the  loftiest  and  purest  blessings  of  the  old  and  new 
covenants.  Abraham  was  not  the  only  friend  of  God,  nor  Enoch 
the  only  one  who  walked  with  Him. 

15.  In  the  section  following  the  Psalmist  turns  again  to  prayer, 
and  he  begins  by  a  description  of  his  attitude  of  soul — mine  eyes 
are  'toward  Jehovah.'  Sometimes  the  eyes  should  be  fixed  upon 
the  pathway  to  avoid  pitfalls  and  entanglements  ;  but  when  a  man 
is  hopelessly  ensnared  he  looks  up  to  God  for  deliverance. 

16.  Turn  thee  unto  me,  &c.  Everything  for  the  Psalmist 
depends  on  whether  God's  face  is  turned  towards  him  or  away 
from  him.  The  outline  of  the  landscape  may  not  be  altered,  but 
how  do  its  features  and  aspect  change  when  from  the  midst  of 
grey  and  lowering  clouds  the  sunshine  breaks  through  and  the 
azure  of  heaven  appears  ! 

17.  Critics  with  one  consent  find  the  need  of  a  change  in  the 
text  here.  The  English  reader  understands  by  troubles  being 
'  enlarged  '  that  they  are  increased  and  multiplied.  The  Hebrew 
cannot  mean  this,  and  R.  V.  marg.  indicates  the  way  in  which 
a  change  may  be  made  with  very  slight  alteration  of  the  letters:  — 

'The  straits  of  my  heart  do  thou  enlarge, 
And  bring  me  forth  from  my  distresses.' 


THE   PSALMS  25.  18— 26.  i  137 

Consider  mine  affliction  and  my  travail ;  18 

And  forgive  all  my  sins. 

Consider  mine  enemies,  for  they  are  many  ;  19 

And  they  hate  me  with  cruel  hatred. 

O  keep  my  soul,  and  deliver  me  :  20 

Let  me  not  be  ashamed,  for  I  put  my  trust  in  thee. 

Let  integrity  and  uprightness  preserve  me,  21 

For  I  wait  on  thee. 

Redeem  Israel,  O  God,  22 

Out  of  all  his  troubles. 

A  Psalm  of  David.  26 

Judge  me,  O  Lord,  for  I  have  walked  in  mine  integrity  :  1 

18.  The  missing  letter  Qoph  might  be  restored  here  by  inserting 
'Draw  near*  (Ewald),  'Arise'  (Baur),  or  by  changing  the  word 
translated  '  Consider.'  It  is  hardly  likely  that  two  verses  would 
begin  with  the  same  word. 

19.  cruel,  or  perhaps  better,  'violent  hatred,'  means  'hatred 
which  proceeds  from  injustice  and  leads  to  fresh  injustice.' 
(Delitzsch.) 

20.  Preserve  here,  as  elsewhere,  the  characteristic  phrase,  *  in 
thee  have  I  taken  refuge.'  The  general  phrase,  Z  put  my  trust, 
is  not  close  and  definite  enough. 

21.  Without  misgiving  can  the  Psalmist  who  asked  for  the 
pardon  of  his  '  great '  iniquity  plead,  as  a  reason  why  he  should 
be  heard,  his  integrity  and  uprig-htuess,  and  ask  that  these 
qualities  may  still  be  his  protection.  Partly  because  he  does  not 
mean  by  them  perfection  of  character,  but  only  an  honest  deter- 
mination to  do  right ;  partly  because  even  this  excellence  is  not  so 
much  his  own  as  derived  from  God,  Per  I  wait  on  thee. 

22.  A  most  fitting  close  to  the  Psalm  if  written  by  an  exile; 
a  most  suitable  liturgical  addition  if  appended  to  an  earlier  Psalm  in 
order  to  make  of  it  a  litany  for  present  needs.  The  use  of  the 
name  Elohim,  rather  than  the  Yahweh  which  is  characteristic  of 
the  first  Book  of  Psalms,  as  well  as  the  alphabetical  anomaly 
mentioned  above,  may  indicate  that  this  verse  was  a  later  addition. 
But  the  prayer  admirably  harmonizes  with  the  whole  spirit  of  the 
Psalm,  and  sums  up  its  petitions. 

Psalm  XXVI.    The  Plea  of  the  Upright. 
No  indications  of  date  are  found  in  this  Psalm  to  enable  us  to 
fix  the  circumstances  of  its  composition.     It  is  in  all  probability 


138  THE   PSALMS  26.  2 

I  have  trusted  also  in  the  Lord  without  wavering. 
2  Examine  me,  O  Lord,  and  prove  me  ; 
Try  my  reins  and  my  heart. 


much  later  than  the  time  of  David.  It  implies  the  temple-worship, 
verse  6,  and  a  sharp  division  between  the  godly  and  the  ungodly. 
The  former  are  clearly  in  the  minority,  and  the  speaker  is  not 
a  man  in  authority,  verses  9  and  10.  Some  interpreters  (Ewald) 
find  in  Pss.  xxvi  and  xxviii  references  to  'a  severe  calamity, 
perhaps  a  pestilence,  sweeping  aw^ay  many  human  beings,'  and 
from  this  the  Psalmist  prays  to  be  delivered.  Others  (Baethgen) 
judge  that  no  personal  or  national  event  of  any  kind  is  referred  to, 
but  that  the  Psalm  was  composed  as  a  general  one,  suitable  to  any 
pious  worshipper  in  the  temple  at  any  time.  The  truth  lies, 
perhaps,  somewhere  between  these  conjectures.  The  state  of 
society  is  such  that  the  righteous  man  is  more  or  less  in  danger, 
and  he  prays  with  a  continual  side-glance  at  gatherings  of  evil- 
doers who  would  gladly  do  him  a  mischief;  but  no  special 
calamity  seems  to  be  imminent.  We  agree  with  those  who  would 
place  the  Psalm  in  the  prophetic  rather  than  the  post-Exilic 
period. 

It  may  be  divided  into  two  parts  :  1-7  a  protest,  8-12  a  prayer. 
But  prayer  is  contained  in  the  former  part  and  protest  in  the 
latter ;  and  a  more  minute  subdivision  would  find  in  1-3  an 
opening  plea  ;  4-8  a  strong  self-vindication,  and  9-12  a  closing 
petition  for  deliverance,  with  its  answer. 

1.  The  prayer.  'Judge  me,  Jehovah,'  asks  that  God  would 
vindicate  before  the  world  that  righteousness  of  character  and 
conduct  which  the  Psalmist  is  conscious  of  having  preserved  under 
circumstances  of  no  small  difficulty. 

iutegfrity  aptly  describes  the  prevailing  feature  of  character 
which  he  claims  for  himself — whole-hearted  sincerity  of  purpose 
in  serving  God.  The  writer  does  not  claim  to  be  sinless  ;  he  docs 
claim  to  be  sharply  distinguifehed  by  the  simplicity  and  earnestness 
of  his  devotion  from  the  evil-doers  around  him,  the  whole  object 
of  whose  lives  is  entirely  different  from  his. 

2.  That  the  Psalmist  is  not  guilty  of  Pharisaic  self-righteousness 
is  made  clear  by  two  considerations  :  first,  the  entire  trust  in  God 
as  his  strength  expressed  in  the  first  verse  ;  secondly,  the  frank 
and  confident  prayer  of  this  verse  that  God  would  search  his 
motives  through  and  through.  Two  kinds  of  testing  or  purifying 
of  metal  are  here  referred  to  ;  and  two  parts  of  man's  nature,  the 
reins  as  standing  for  the  affections  and  desires,  the  heart  for 
the  centre  of  conscious  action,  the  thought  wliich  plans  and  the 
will  which  resolves  and  executes. 


THE   PSALMS  26.  3-7  159 

For  thy  lovingkindness  is  before  mine  eyes ; 

And  I  have  walked  in  thy  truth. 

I  have  not  sat  with  vain  persons ; 

Neither  will  I  go  in  with  dissemblers. 

I  hate  the  congregation  of  evil-doers, 

And  will  not  sit  with  the  wicked. 

I  will  wash  mine  hands  in  innocency ; 

So  will  I  compass  thine  altar,  O  Lord  : 

That  I  may  make  the  voice  of  thanksgiving  to  be  heard, 

3.  The  two  safeguards  which  have  kept  God's  servant  from 
falling  into  evil — God's  lovingfkindness  towards  the  weak  and 
erring,  and  his  '  faithfulness '  in  adhering  to  His  word  and  main- 
taining His  truth. 

4.  The  body  of  the  protestation  consists  of  two  parts,  marked 
by  past  and  future  tenses,  Z  have  not  sat,  'I  will  not  go.*  The 
Psalmist  declares  what  he  has  not  done,  and  what  he  is  steadfastly 
purposed  to  do.  If  past  and  future  are  thus  clear,  so  far  as  in  him 
lies,  he  may  well  claim  God's  vindication  in  the  present.  'Vanity/ 
says  Delitzsch,  means  *  the  chaotic  emptiness  of  alienation  from 
God.'  It  is  part  of  the  deep-seated  morality  of  Hebrew  thought 
that  wickedness  implies  unreality  :  the  man  who  ignores  God  in 
his  life  is  hollow,  is  not  in  contact  with  realities,  the  eternal  and 
unalterable  facts  of  existence.  Some  consciousness  of  this  is 
implied  in  the  existence  of  dissemblers,  who  mask  tlieir  actual 
aims,  thus  paying  outward  tribute  to  righteousness. 

5.  Two  kinds  of  sinners,  more  or  less  overt.  They  may  have 
actually  assembled  to  frame  their  evil  plans  ;  or  cong-regation 
may  mean  simply  company,  the  *  set '  of  such  as  usually  consort 
together  for  evil. 

6.  Washing  was  constantly  used  in  a  symbolical  sense  under 
the  old  covenant.  But  the  reference  here  may  be  to  the  ablutions 
of  the  priests  before  they  ministered  at  the  altar,  Exod.  xxx.  17-21; 
or  to  the  formal  hand-washing  of  the  city  elders  in  Deut.  xxi.  6,  7, 
who  solemnly  protest,  '  Our  hands  have  not  shed  this  blood, 
neither  have  our  eyes  seen  it.'  Compare  the  well-known  incident 
of  Pilate,  Matt,  xxvii.  4.  The  phrase  to  'compass  the  altar'  has 
been  understood  as  implying  a  ritual  procession  round  the  altar. 
Such  a  custom  is  not  recognized  in  the  law,  but  it  is  quite  possible 
that  it  may  have  grown  up  in  practice.  The  expression  here  used 
does  not  necessarily  imply  it. 

7.  The  public  worship  of  God,  and  the  thankful  acknowledgement 
of  His  providential  mercies  and  deliverance,  is  a  kind  of  antidote 
to  the  spirit  which  animated  the  disioj-al  men  who  gathered  to 


I40  THE    PSALMS  26.  8-12 

And  tell  of  all  thy  wondrous  works. 

8  Lord,  I  love  the  habitation  of  thy  house, 
And  the  place  where  thy  glory  dwelleth. 

9  Gather  not  my  soul  with  sinners, 
Nor  my  life  with  men  of  blood : 

10  In  whose  hands  is  mischief. 

And  their  right  hand  is  full  of  bribes. 

11  But  as  for  me,  I  will  walk  in  mine  integrity: 
Redeem  me,  and  be  merciful  unto  me. 

13  My  foot  standeth  in  an  even  place  : 

In  the  congregations  will  I  bless  the  Lord. 

plot  for  their  own  advantage.  Amidst  the  disquietudes  and 
complexities  of  the  present,  the  Psalmists  constantly  find  relief  by 
celebrating  the  '  wondrous  deeds  '  which  God  has  wrought  for  His 
people  in  the  past. 

8.  Love  for  God's  house  means  love  for  God's  presence.  His 
glory  may  be  manifested  formally,  as  by  the  ark,  which  was 
the  symbol  of  His  dwelling  *  between  the  cherubims,'  or  by  the 
cloud  of  glory  which  filled  the  house,  2  Chron.  v.  14.  But  the  Psalm- 
ists lay  stress  not  upon  the  symbol,  but  the  spiritual  reality 
symbolized. 

9,  10.  Gather  not  my  soul  is  understood  bj'  some  of  the  best 
commentators  to  mean,  ^do  not  destroy  my  life'  in  the  company 
of  these  wicked  men  ; '  let  me  not  share  their  fate.'  So  Kirkpatrick, 
who  sa3'S,  '  How  natural  a  prayer  if  a  pestilence  was  raging,  which 
seemed  to  strike  righteous  and  wicked  indiscriminately  ! '  but  this 
conjecture,  originally  made  by  Ewald,  seems  gratuitous.  The 
Psalmist  pleads  that  in  heart  and  character  he  is  diametrically 
opposed  to  these  evil  men,  and  prays  that  God  would  discriminate 
between  him  and  them,  that  he  should  not  be  confused  with  them 
or  mistaken  for  one  of  them — either  in  their  plots,  their  practices, 
or  their  ultimate  fate.     (So  Calvin,  Hupfeld.) 

blood  .  .  .  mischief .  .  .  bribes :  they  commit  violence  when 
they  can  ;  they  plot  maliciously  when  outrage  would  be  dangerous, 
and  they  pervert  justice  when  called  to  account.  Evidently  men 
of  position,  of  substance  and  influence,  are  the  offenders  here. 

11.  The  Psalmist  repeats  his  earlier  resolves.  Bedeem  me 
does  not  necessarily  imply  that  the  nation  is  the  subject  of  the 
Psalm  (Cheyne)  :  it  rather  means,  '  Save  me  from  the  punishment 
which  must  overtake  these  evil-doers.' 

be  merciful :  better,  <  be  gracious  unto  me.' 

12.  Already  an  answer  is  vouchsafed  to  his  prayer.     In  spirit 


THE    PSALMS  27.  i  141 

A  Psalm  of  David.  27 

The  Lord  is  my  light  and  my  salvation  ;  whom  shall  I  i 

fear? 
The  Lord  is  the  strength  of  my  life ;  of  whom  shall  I 

be  afraid  ? 

he  stands  already  in  that  '  open  place '  which  meant  freedom  and 
safety.     He  gives  thanks  accordingly. 

Psalm  XXVII.     Divine  Light  and  Strength  in  Weal  or  Woe. 

Good  reasons  have  been  assigned  for  considering  this  a  com- 
posite Psalm.  At  the  end  of  verse  6  a  marked  change  occurs ; 
partly  in  the  rhythm,  partly  in  the  style,  which  becomes  cumbrous 
in  contrast  to  the  simplicity  of  the  earlier  part,  but  chiefly  in  the 
tone  and  substance,  which  changes  from  the  joyful  confidence  of 
faith  to  the  plaint  of  anxious  fear.  It  is  of  course  possible  that 
the  Psalm  was  originally  written  as  one  whole  in  its  present  form. 
A  change  of  mood  is  so  far  from  being  remarkable  that  few  Psalms 
preserve  one  unbroken  level  of  experience,  either  of  sorrow  or 
jo}'.  But  in  this  case  the  descent  is  so  marked  that  it  is  difficult 
to  understand  how  any  writer's  circumstances  and  outlook  should 
be  so  suddenly  and  completely  altered.  If  it  be  read  as  one 
whole,  one  must  suppose  that  the  position  of  the  Psalmist  is  to  be 
found  in  verses  13  and  14,  that  at  first  he  expresses  the  confidence 
which  the  sight  of  '  the  goodness  of  the  Lord '  awakened,  and  tiiat 
afterwards  allows  himself  to  be  overcome  by  fear  of  the  *  enemies 
round  about  'him.  If  in  verses  1-6  we  have  a  joyful  lyric  of 
earlier  date,  we  may  imagine  7-13  to  have  been  added  later  as 
a  plea  of  the  righteous  man  who  lived  in  troublous  times,  and 
longed  to  realize  the  pristine  joy,  very  much  as  in  Isa.  Ixiii.  7  the 
prophet  sings  of  Divine  goodness  and  in  17  pleads  with  the  God 
who  seems  to  have  forgotten  and  forsaken  His  people. 

In  this  case  1-6  might  be  conceived  as  Davidic,  although  the 
language  of  verse  4  seems  to  point  to  a  later  period.  The  title 
in  the  LXX,  which  ascribes  the  Psalm  to  *  David  before  his 
anointing,'  no  doubt  proceeds  from  the  view  that  verse  10  refers 
to  the  time  when  David  left  his  father  and  mother  in  Moab 
(i  Sam.  xxii.  3,  4). 

1.  Nowhere  else  in  the  O.  T.  is  God  thus  directl}'  called  my 
light,  though  the  references  to  the  illuminating  influence  of  God's 
presence  and  favour  are  very  numerous.  The  opening  words, 
Dominus  illumtnatio  mea,  are  well  known  as  the  motto  of  the 
Oxford  University, 

Render,  'the  stronghold  of  my  life'  (R. V.  marg.),  since  the 
idea  here  is   not    so  much  that   God   supplies    strength   to   the 


142  THE   PSALMS  27.  2-4 

3  When  evil-doers  came  upon  me  to  eat  up  my  flesh, 
Eve7i  mine  adversaries  and  my  foes,  they  stumbled  and 
fell. 

3  Though  an  host  should  encamp  against  me, 
My  heart  shall  not  fear  : 

Though  war  should  rise  against  me, 
Even  then  will  I  be  confident. 

4  One  thing  have  I  asked  of  the  Lord,  that  will  I  seek  after ; 
That  I  may  dwell  in  the  house  of  the  Lord  all  the  days 

of  my  life, 
To  behold  the  beauty  of  the  Lord,  and  to  inquire  in  his 
temple. 

Psalmist  from  within,  as  that   He  is  a  strong  protection  from 
without  against  cruel  advancing  foes. 

2.  In  this  verse,  and  again  in  verse  lo,  it  is  impossible  to  be 
sure  whether  an  actually  accomplished  fact  is  referred  to,  or  a 
general  statement  intended,  which  is  thrown  into  the  concrete  as 
history.    We  might  translate  here,  as  some  sound  interpreters  do, 

*  When  evil-doers  come  against  me,  to  devour  my  flesh. 
My  adversaries  and  my  foes  upon  me — they  stumble  and  fall.* 

The  wild  beasts  ready  to  devour  might  be  Saul  and  his 
myrmidons,  or  as  in  Job  xix.  22,  '  friends '  more  cruel  than  foes, 
who  prey  upon  the  reputation  of  their  victim  and  add  a  keener 
pang  to  his  bodily  sufferings  by  taunting  him  with  the  fact  that 
God  has  forsaken  him.  The  simpler  meaning  seems  the  better 
here, 

3.  The  contingent  statement  of  this  verse  and  its  outlook  into 
the  future  seem  more  significant  if  verse  2  be  taken  as  a  record 
of  actual  experience. 

4.  That  I  may  dwellinthe  house  of  Jehovah,  &c.  Expressions 
of  this  kind  must  not  be  understood  literally.  Compare  xxiii.  6, 
Ixv.  4.  It  is  not  a  building  with  four  walls  of  which  the  Psalmist 
is  thinking  ;  and  it  would  be  a  mistake  to  press  the  exact  meaning 
of  '  palace '  in  this  verse  or  of '  tent '  in  verses  5  and  6.  An  earlier 
or  later  structure  known  as  'God's  house'  may  have  suggested 
the  thought ;  but  there  were  many  Beth-els  known  to  O,  T.  saints 
besides  that  to  which  Jacob  gave  the  name. 

It  is  the  presence  of  Jehovah  which  delights  the  soul  of  the 
Psalmist;  partly  because  of  its  'beauty'  or  'pleasantness,'  the 
kindly  greeting  which  lights  up  the  face  of  the  gracious  Host ; 


THE   PSALMS  27.  5-7  I43 

For  in  the  day  of  trouble  he  shall  keep  me  secretly  in  5 

his  pavilion  : 
In  the  covert  of  his  tabernacle  shall  he  hide  me  ; 
He  shall  lift  me  up  upon  a  rock. 
And  now  shall   mine  head   be   lifted   up  above   mine  6 

enemies  round  about  me ; 
And  I  will  offer  in  his  tabernacle  sacrifices  of  joy ; 
I  will  sing,  yea,  I  will  sing  praises  unto  the  Lord. 

Hear,  O  Lord,  when  I  cry  with  my  voice :  7 

Have  mercy  also  upon  me,  and  answer  me. 

partly  because  of  the  mental  enlightenment  and  help  given  to  those 
who  ask  questions  of  this  Interpreter  in  the  House  Beautiful ; 
partly  (see  next  verse)  because  of  the  security  which  this 
home  affords,  the  sure  asylum  which  may  be  found  in  this 
sanctuary. 

5.  A  flimsy  tent  may  be  the  surest  of  all  refuges  in  the  desert, 
if  reception  into  it  mean  that  the  traveller  is  under  the  powerful  pro- 
tection of  a  Bedouin  sheikh.  Or,  as  in  the  latter  part  of  this  verse, 
a  rocky  fastness  perfectly  impregnable  against  enemies  rnay  be  the 
figure  employed.  In  either  case  it  is  the  presence  and  favour  of  God 
which  provides  all  that  is  needed.  One  who  enjoys  the  intimacy 
of  this  high  communion  need  fear  neither  foe  nor  storm. 

6.  In  verse  3,  when  dire  evils  threatened,  the  Psalmist  could 
utter  his  Even  then  will  I  be  confident ;  here,  in  the  might  of  his 
faith  he  breaks  forth  with  a  triumphant  And  now  ...  I  will  sing  ! 
The  mention  of  enemies  here  is  fairly  used  by  those  who  defend 
the  unity  of  the  Psalm  to  show  that  throughout  the  whole  the 
writer  is  exposed  to  danger,  and  that  there  is  no  inconsistency 
between  the  thanksgiving  of  this  verse  and  the  suppliant  tone  of 
the  next.  Perowne  translates  '  sacrifices  of  shouting '  ;  Cheyne, 
'  of  resounding  mirth ' ;  and  though  neither  of  these  phrases  is 
very  happy,  both  contain  an  element  of  trumpet-toned  jubilation 
which  ought  to  be  expressed,  and  which  the  current  translation 
lacks.     Compare  R.V.  marg.,  'trumpet-sound.' 

7.  Render,  '  Be  gracious  also  unto  me.'  Whether  the  original 
poet  passed  at  once  from  the  last  verse  to  this,  or  added  the  latter 
portion  of  the  Psalm  in  another  mood,  or  an  altogether  later 
Psalmist  blended  his  sighs  with  earlier  glad  songs,  the  reader  of 
to-day  may  unite  these  strains  without  any  serious  sense  of 
incongruity.  Clouds  hide  the  brightness  of  the  early  morning 
sky  ;  the  Psalmist  prays  that  these  maj'  in  turn  be  scattered. 


144  THE   PSALMS  27.  8-ti 

8  When  thou  saidst,  Seek  ye  my  face ;  my  heart  said  unto 

thee, 
Thy  face,  Lord,  will  I  seek. 

9  Hide  not  thy  face  from  me ; 

Put  not  thy  servant  away  in  anger  : 
Thou  hast  been  my  help  ; 

Cast  me  not  off,  neither  forsake  me,  O  God  of  my  salva- 
tion. 

10  For  my  father  and  my  mother  have  forsaken  me, 
But  the  Lord  will  take  me  up. 

1 1  Teach  me  thy  way,  O  Lord  ; 
And  lead  me  in  a  plain  path, 
Because  of  mine  enemies. 

8.  At  least  he  may  plead  that  he  has  ever  been  a  true  follower 
of  Jehovah.  In  this  verse  emotion  masters  him,  his  utterance  is 
broken,  and  brief  to  obscurity.  It  runs  literally,  *  To  thee  my 
heart  hath  said,'  or  as  the  P.  B.  V.  picturesquely,  if  not  quite 
accurately,  '  My  heart  hath  talked  of  thee,  Seek  ye  my  face  :  Thy 
face  do  I  seek,  Jehovah.'  An  inner  colloquy  has  been  going  on  : 
God's  voice  sounding  in  the  heart,  with  its  gracious  invitation  met 
by  a  response  on  the  part  of  the  Psalmist  to  the  call  which 
summons  all  God's  people  to  follow  Him.  Compare  cv.  4,  '  Seek 
Jehovah  and  His  strength  :  seek  His  face  evermore.' 

9.  Man's  best  plea  is  always  an  echo  of  God's  promise.  He  who 
has  bidden  His  servants  to  seek  will  not  hide  His  face  when  they 
obey  Him. 

10.  The  translation  of  R.V.  have  forsaken  is  more  literal 
than  that  of  A.  V.,  '  When  my  father  and  my  mother  forsake  me.' 
But  it  is  not  certain  that  past  experience  is  intended,  nor  that 
a  literal  orphanhood  or  desertion  on  the  part  of  parents  is  to  be 
understood.  The  phrase  is  a  strong  expression  of  loneliness,  as 
the  encamping  of  hosts  in  verse  3  is  of  threatened  danger. 
Actual  present  friendlessness,  literal  or  comparative,  is  probably 
implied. 

11.  Here  the  Psalmist  is  not  resting  in  the  tranquil  security  of 
the  Divine  pavilion,  but  groping  his  way  in  an  unknown  country, 
full  of  pitfalls  laid  by  enemies  who  would  compass  his  ruin.  He 
desires  to  make  his  way  to  God's  presence,  but  it  can  only  be  by 
God's  path.  Hence  he  asks  that  this  pathway  may  be  made 
clear,  and  that  it  may  lie  in  an  'open  place,'  where  those  who  lie 
in  wait  may  gain  no  advantage  over  him. 


THE   PSALMS  27.  12— 28.  r  14$ 

Deliver  me  not  over  unto  the  will  of  mine  adversaries  :      12 
For  false  witnesses  are  risen  up  against  me,  and  such  as 

breathe  out  cruelty. 
I  had  fainted,  unless  I  had  believed  to  see  the  goodness  13 

of  the  Lord 
In  the  land  of  the  living. 

Wait  on  the  Lord  :  14 

Be  strong,  and  let  thine  heart  take  courage ; 
Yea,  wait  thou  on  the  Lord. 

A  Psalm  of  David.  28 

Unto  thee,  O  Lord,  will  I  call ;  i 

My  rock,  be  not  thou  deaf  unto  me : 

12.  A  different  kind  of  danger  is  hinted  at  here.  In  the  earlier 
part  of  the  Psalm  it  was  necessary  to  encounter  open  foes  and 
fight  at  long  odds.  Here  malice  shows  itself  in  calumny,  and 
God's  servant  fears  lest  the  cause  of  righteousness  should  be 
hindered  by  his  making  a  false  step,  or  by  the  spread  of  false 
reports  concerning  him.  Violence  is  the  mischief  of  the  strong, 
as  fraud  is  the  resort  of  those  who  must  walk  warily. 

13.  The  insertion  of '  I  had  fainted'  in  A.  V.  and  R.  V.  gives  the 
meaning  excellently.  The  broken  sentence  of  the  original  is, 
however,  much  more  forcible  :  '  Oh !  had  I  not  believed  to  see  the 
goodness  of  Jehovah  in  the  land  of  the  living.'  Compare  Gen. 
1.  15,  '  Ah  !  but  if  Joseph  were  to  show  enmity  against  us ' — i.  e. 
then  it  would  go  hardly  with  us  indeed. 

the  land  of  the  living*  is  opposed  to  Sheol,  the  land  of  the 
shades.  It  is  in  this  life  that  man  is  to  praise  God  (Isa.  xxxviii.  19), 
and  it  is  here,  amongst  those  who  inhabit  '  the  warm  precincts  of 
the  cheerful  day,'  that  the  Psalmist  deisires  to  see  God's  goodness 
manifested. 

14.  Hence  he  calls  upon  himself  to  do  all  that  can  be  done 
at  the  moment — wait  for  God's  own  time  for  intervention  and 
deliverance.  He  bids  himself  be  strong  in  the  citadel  of  the 
soul,  let  thine  heart  take  conrag-e  :  for  only  those  who  fortify 
themselves  in  faith  and  in  the  patience  of  hope  can  expect  to  see 
the  salvation  of  the  Lord. 

Psalm  XXVIII.     Prayer  of  the  Righteous  in  the 
MIDST  OF  Evil-doers. 
There  is  an   obvious  and  often-noted  connexion  between  this 
Psalm  and  Psalm  xxvi.  The  situation  is  similar,  the  pleas  are  almost 


146  THE   PSALMS  28.  2,  3 

Lest,  if  thou  be  silent  unto  me, 

I  become  like  them  that  go  down  into  the  pit. 

2  Hear  the  voice  of  my  supplications,  when  I  cry  unto  thee, 
When  I  lift  up  my  hands  toward  thy  holy  oracle. 

3  Draw  me  not  away  with  the  wicked, 

the  same.  The  Psalmist  is  surrounded  by  evil  and  mischief- work- 
ing men,  and  is  afraid  of  being  involved  with  them  in  the  fate 
which  sooner  or  later  will  overtake  them.  Whether  such  fate 
were  imminent  in  the  form  of  pestilence  or  threatened  destruction 
does  not  appear,  though  the  hints  to  this  effect  are  somewhat 
stronger  than  in  the  companion-Psalm.  Many  interpreters  refer 
■  the  Psalm  to  David  during  his  flight  from  Absalom  (Perowne, 
Kirkpatrick) ;  Ewald  suggests  Josiah,  and  Hitzig  Jeremiah,  as  the 
author,  while  Cheyne  assigns  Pss.  xxvi,  xxvii.  7-14  and  xxviii  to 
the  time  of  Nehemiah  and  the  persecution  of  Sanballat.  It  may 
be  viewed  as  a  great  and  abiding  advantage — though  to  the 
historical  student  disappointing — that  the  language  of  the  Psalm 
is  found  to  suit  periods  and  cases  so  different  as  these,  together 
with  a  multitude  besides  in  all  generations. 

The  first  strophe,  verses  i  and  2,  contains  an  opening  cry ;  the 
next,  verses  3-5,  prays  that  God  would  discriminate  and  save  the 
Psalmist  from  the  punishment  that  will  overtake  the  wicked  ; 
the  next,  verses  6,  7,  describes  deliverance  as  already  at  the  doors  ; 
while  the  closing  verses  8  and  9  commend  the  nation  to  God  in 
prayer. 

1.  A  pathetic  appeal  to  be  heard.  Where  we  say  nnto  the 
Hebrew  more  graphically  says  'Be  not  silent  (or,  deaf)  from  me'; 
i.  e.  turn  not  from  me  like  one  who  is  deaf  or  dumb,  or  both. 
When  an  answer  to  prayer  fails  to  come,  it  seems  as  if  God  could 
not  or  would  not  hear ;  and  the  pious  Jew  does  not  hesitate  to 
use  bold  expressions  from  which  less  religious  people  shrink. 
It  was  because  the  Psalmist^  really  trusted  God  that  he  could  thus 
speak. 

The  expression  '  They  that  go  down  to  the  pit '  may  imply  that 
many  were  dying,  as  from  pestilence ;  or  more  probably  it  is  to 
be  understood  in  the  sense  that  life  is  not  life  without  God,  and 
that  if  He  cease  to  care  for  His  people  they  sink  into  the  mere 
nonentity-existence  of  Sheol.  The  use  of  the  same  phrase  in 
cxliii.  7  seems  to  show  that  it  was  quasi-proverbial. 

2.  thy  holy  oracle  means  the  Holy  of  Holies.  Driver  and 
Cheyne  translate  'holy  chancel,'  which  introduces  a  jarring  modern 
note.  The  rendering  of  R.  V.  marg.  is  somewhat  cumbrous  ;  we 
might  read  instead,  '  toward  thine  inmost  sanctuary.' 

3.  For  the  '  Gather  mc  not  *  of  xxvi.  9  we  have  here  '  Drag  me 


THE   PSALMS  28.  4-7  147 

And  with  the  workers  of  iniquity  ; 

Vv^hich  speak  peace  with  their  neighbours, 

But  mischief  is  in  their  hearts. 

Give  them  according  to  their  work,  and  according  to  the  4 

wickedness  of  their  doings  : 
Give  them  after  the  operation  of  their  hands ; 
Render  to  them  their  desert. 

Because  they  regard  not  the  works  of  the  Lord,  5 

Nor  the  operation  of  his  hands, 
He  shall  break  them  down  and  not  build  them  up. 

Blessed  be  the  Lord,  6 

Because  he  hath  heard  the  voice  of  my  suppHcations. 
The  Lord  is  my  strength  and  my  shield ;  7 

not  away,'  which  suggests,  as  the  milder  phrase  does  not,  that 
punishment  is  impending  for  these  evil-doers.  But  it  may  indicate 
only  the  intense  repulsion  with  which  the  Psalmist  regards  the 
evil  practices  of  his  contemporaries,  stern  judgement  upon  whom 
is  certain  to  fall,  and  the  righteous  can  only  welcome  it. 

4,  5.  The  imperative  of  the  fourth  verse  is  not  identical  in 
meaning  with  the  future  of  the  fifth,  but  the  two  are  closely  akin. 
The  Psalmist  asks  that  retribution  may  come,  and  he  contemplates 
it  as  sure  to  come,  in  both  cases  viewing  it  as  the  necessary 
vindication  of  God's  righteous  government  in  the  earth. 

The  reiteration  of  the  phrase  'works  and  operation  of  his 
hands '  is  very  effective.  Only  one  kind  of  work  is  truly  stable 
in  history  the  Psalmist  would  say,  viz.  the  Divine.  Those  who 
'  fix  on  God's  work  their  steadfast  eye '  will  find  that  '  their  work 
is  done'  so  as  to  abide.  But  'every  branch  that  my  Father  hath 
not  planted  shall  be  rooted  up.'  The  phrases  to  'break  down' 
and  'build  up,'  used  of  persons,  are  frequently  found  in  the  O.  T., 
especially  in  Jeremiah. 

6.  A  sudden  outburst  of  praise,  no  more  accounted  for  in  the 
context  than  the  sudden  change  from  exultation  to  supplication  in 
xxvii.  7.  Some  commentators  find  in  the  verses  that  follow  a  later 
addition,  announcing  that  the  prayer  had  been  heard  and  answered. 
It  seems  more  natural,  however,  to  find  the  change  in  the  Psalmist's 
own  spirit,  and  to  read  this  verse  as  the  confident  utterance  of  the 
faith  which  is  '  the  giving  substance  to  things  hoped  for.' 

7.  All  the  expressions  of  this  verse  confirm  the  view  just  taken. 
There  is  no  note  of  actual  objective  deliverance. 

L    2 


148  THE   PSALMS  28.  8—29.  i 

My  heart  hath  trusted  in  him,  and  I  am  helped ; 
Therefore  my  heart  greatly  rejoiceth  ; 
And  with  my  song  will  I  praise  him. 

8  The  Lord  is  their  strength, 

And  he  is  a  strong  hold  of  salvation  to  his  anointed. 

9  Save  thy  people,  and  bless  thine  inheritance : 
Feed  them  also,  and  bear  them  up  for  ever. 

10  A  Psalm  of  David. 

I  Give  unto  the  Lord,  O  ye  sons  of  the  mighty, 
Give  unto  the  Lord  glory  and  strength. 

8,  9.  Whether  David  or  Jeremiah,  or  some  obscure  saint,  be  the 
speaker,  this  reference  to  the  king  and  the  nation  forms  a  natural 
and  appropriate  climax  to  the  Psalm.  As  the  text  stands,  their 
strength  refers  to  the  people,  mention  of  whom  follows.  A  slight 
change  of  reading  would  give,  as  in  LXX,  Vulg.  and  Syr., 
'Jehovah  is  a  strength  unto  his  people'  (R. V.  raarg.). 

The  closing  prayer  is  very  suggestive ;  Feed  them  should  rather 
be  'Tend  them,'  //'/.  'Shepherd  them';  for  in  that  single  word  all 
kinds  of  loving  help  and  'governance*  are  included.  In  the  last 
clause,  to  hear  them  up  describes  one  feature  only  of  the 
shepherd's  care,  though  it  is  one  which  Christian  art  has  made 
gratefully  familiar  in  its  application  to  the  Good  Shepherd.  That 
which  Moses,  for  all  his  great-hearted  patience,  found  himself 
unable  to  do  for  Israel  in  the  wilderness  (Exod.  xvii.  4)  God  did 
throughout  the  generations — He  '  bare  and  carried  them  all  the 
days  of  old,'  Isa,  Ixiii.  9.  No  prayer  for  church  or  nation  can  ask 
a  higher  boon  than  this,  that  God  would  '  shepherd  them  and  bear 
them  up  for  ever.' 

Psalm  XXIX.    The  Voice  of  God  in  the  Storm. 

The  '  Psalm  of  the  seven  thunders,'  as  Delitzsch  styles  it.  The 
noun  'thunder'  does  not  occur  in  the  Psalm,  and  the  verb  but 
once ;  but  there  can  be  no  mistaking  the  meaning  of  the  seven 
times  repeated  '  voice  of  Jehovah '  which  peals  over  earth  and  sea. 
In  several  places  (e.  g.  Job  xxviii.  26  and  xxxviii.  25)  the  word 
translated  '  thunder '  is  simply  *  voices '  ;  compare  the  association 
of  the  two  words  in  the  Apocalypse  (viii.  5,  xi.  19,  &c.). 
Thunderstorms,  such  as  are  seldom  seen  in  this  country,  are 
frequent  in  Palestine  in  winter,  and  the  Jew  found  in  them  special 
manifestations  of  the  might  and  majesty  of  Jehovah.     Compare 


THE   PSALMS  29.  2-4  149 

Give  unto  the  Lord  the  glory  due  unto  his  name ;  ; 

Worship  the  Lord  in  the  beauty  of  hoHness. 

The  voice  of  the  Lord  is  upon  the  waters  :  ; 

The  God  of  glory  thundereth, 

Even  the  Lord  upon  many  waters. 

The  voice  of  the  Lord  is  powerful ;  - 

The  voice  of  the  Lord  is  full  of  majesty. 

the  sublime  description  of  the.giving  of  the  law  on  Mount  Sinai  in 
Exod.  xix. 

Few  finer  poetical  descriptions  of  a  storm  are  to  be  found  in 
literature.  But  the  Psalmist  did  not  labour  to  produce  a  piece  of 
fine  writing.  Because  his  art  vanishes  in  presence  of  his  religion, 
the  effect  of  highest  art  is  unconsciously  produced.  Ewald  ascribes 
the  Psalm  to  David.  It  falls  naturally  into  three  parts— an  intro- 
duction, verses  i  and  2 ;  the  sevenfold  utterance  of  the  voice  of  God, 
verses  3-9  ;  and  the  conclusion,  verses  10  and  11. 

1.  A  magnificent  exordium.  The  Psalmist  calls  upon  the  highest 
of  the  celestial  hosts  to  celebrate  the  Divine  glory  which  he  feels 
himself  unable  to  utter  aright. 

R.  V.  marg.  shows  that  it  is  doubtful  whether  we  should  read, 
'sons  of  God,'  or  'sons  of  the  gods';  i.e.  whether  the  word 
Elim  is  to  be  understood  in  the  highest  or  in  a  secondary  sense. 
Examples  of  both  uses  are  found ;  see  Job  xxxviii.  7  and  Ps.  xcvii.  7. 
But  in  either  case  the  angels  are  meant,  and  it  is  more  satisfactory, 
and  more  in  accordance  with  O.  T.  usage,  to  consider  them  as  sons 
of  God,  as  standing  in  His  immediate  presence,  and  as  the  highest 
of  His  creatures  in  strength  and  glory,  than  to  view  them  as 
'sons  of  the  gods,'  i.  e.  superhuman  powers  in  a  semi-mythological 
sense. 

2.  Heaven  is  exhibited  as  rendering  homage,  before  the  tribute 
of  earth  is  oftered.  Render,  'Worship  Jehovah  in  holy  array' 
(R.  V.  marg.) ;  the  heavenly  priests  in  the  upper  temple  are 
represented  as  if  attiring  themselves  to  conduct  celestial  worship 
aright.  The  phrase  beauty  of  holiness  has  wrought  itself  into 
our  language,  but  it  hardly  represents  the  original  meaning. 

3.  The  first  peal.  It  is  heard  as  coming  over  the  sea  from  the 
west,  whence  storms  arise  often  with  great  rapidity.  The  last  line 
is  most  majestic  of  all,  'Jehovah  is  on  many  waters.' 

4.  The  second  and  third  peals  come  in  quick  succession  ;  the 
terse,  onomatopoetic  phrases  of  the  Hebrew  enhance  the  effect. 
The  voice  of  Jehovah  is  '  with  power,  with  majesty ' ;  these 
weighty  words  prepare  the  way  for  the  detailed  description  to 
follow. 


150  THE   PSALMS  29.  5-10 

5  The  voice  of  the  Lord  breaketh  the  cedars ; 

Yea,  the  Lord  breaketh  in  pieces  the  cedars  of  Lebanon. 

6  He  maketh  them  also  to  skip  like  a  calf; 
Lebanon  and  Sirion  like  a  young  wild-ox. 

7  The  voice  of  the  Lord  cleaveth  the  flames  of  fire. 

8  The  voice  of  the  Lord  shaketh  the  wilderness ; 
The  Lord  shaketh  the  wilderness  of  Kadesh. 

9  The  voice  of  the  Lord  maketh  the  hinds  to  calve, 
And  strippeth  the  forests  bare : 

And  in  his  temple  every  thing  saith,  Glory. 

TO  The  Lord  sat  as  king  at  the  Flood ; 

5,  6.  Trees  and  mountains,  symbols  of  stability,  are  first  named. 
Cedars,  strong  as  the  hills  on  which  they  grow,  are  snapped  in 
pieces ;  the  very  mountains  shake  to  their  foundations,  and  leap 
in  terror  like  the  antelope  or  wild- ox.  Sirion  is  an  old  Sidonian 
name  for  Hermon. 

7.  A  single  line  in  the  very  middle  of  the  description  comes  like 
a  flash  of  the  lightning  it  describes  : — 

'■  The  voice  of  Jehovah  heweth  out  flames  of  fire.' 

From  the  dark  storm-cloud  as  quarry  the  forked  lightning  darts 
forth  quivering,  as  if  flakes  of  fire  were  hewn  out  by  an  Almighty 
hand. 

8.  As  in  the  far  north  the  loftiest  mountains  are  represented  as 
shaken  to  their  foundations,  so  in  the  south  country  the  open 
*  wilderness '  trembles  as  this  awful  voice  peals  across  its  expanse. 
Kadesli  is  a  term  somewhat  vaguely  used  here,  but  it  may  be 
taken  as  indicating  generally  the  'treeless  limestone  plateau*  which 
is  found  between  the  valley  of  Arabah  and  the  plains  of  Philistia, 
stretching  along  the  southern  border  of  Judah. 

9.  Render,  'maketh  the  hinds  to  writhe  in  travail.'  The  eifects 
noted  in  this  verse,  both  as  regards  trees  and  animals,  are  no  mere 
poetical  figures. 

The  last  line  takes  us  back  to  the  palace  of  the  skies.  There  is 
but  one  sound  to  be  heard — Glory  I  This  is  the  response  made 
to  the  appeal  of  the  poet  in  the  opening  of  the  Psalm.  The  angelic 
hosts  have  witnessed  this  display  of  majestic  energy,  and  the}' 
renew  the  song  which  God's  works  continually  evoke  from  the 
heavenlj'^  choirs. 

10.  Then,  having  once  obtained  this  glimpse  into  heaven,  the 
Psalmist  ventures  to  describe  the  throne  and  Him  who  sits  thereon. 


THE    PSALMS  29.  n— 30.  i  151 

Yea,  the  Lord  sitteth  as  king  for  ever. 

The  Lord  will  give  strength  unto  his  people ;  11 

The  Lord  will  bless  his  people  with  peace. 

A  Psalm ;  a  Song  at  the  Dedication  of  the  House  ;  30 

a  Psalm  of  David. 

I  will  extol  thee,  O  Lord  ;  for  thou  hast  raised  me  up,        i 
And  hast  not  made  my  foes  to  rejoice  over  me. 

The  translation  of  R.  V.,  Jehovali  sat  as  king  at  the  Flood,  is 
almost  certainly  correct  in  leading  the  thought  back  to  the  great 
deluge  of  Gen.  vi,  of  which  the  Psalmist  is  reminded  by  the 
tremendous  downpour  of  rain  following  these  repeated  thunders. 
Supreme  over  that  catastrophe  of  judgement  in  the  days  of  Noah 
there  sat  a  King,  enthroned  above  all,  holding  the  winds  in  His 
fists  and  the  waters  in  the  hollow  of  His  hand,  determining  when 
the  rain  should  fall  and  the  moment  when  it  should  cease.  But  He 
who  was  King  then  is  King  always,  and  this,  hints  the  Psalmist, 
is  the  one  main  lesson  which  the  storms  of  life  should  teach  the 
children  of  men. 

11.  Unless,  indeed,  there  be  a  higher  and  even  more  comforting 
one — that  out  of  such  convulsions  and  cataclysms  are  to  come  the 
two  things  men  most  need,  streng'th  and  peace.  No  music  could 
be  sweeter  and  softer  than  the  '  dying  fall '  of  the  last  line  in  the 
Hebrew,  after  the  roaring  of  the  storm  is  over.  All  is  well  when 
Heaven  cries  Glory  and  earth  echoes  Peace. 

Psalm  XXX.     Thanksgiving  for  Deliverance  from  Death. 

If  this  Psalm  be  considered  apart  from  its  title,  and  the  words 
taken  in  their  natural  meaning,  it  is  seen  to  consist  of  praise  to 
God  after  recovery  from  a  dangerous  illness.  Verses  2  and  3,  and 
again  8  and  9,  are  conclusive  as  to  this.  When  we  turn  to  the  title — 
as  printed  in  R.  V.,  the  punctuation  in  A.  V.  is  incorrect — we  find 
it  to  be  unusual  in  form.  The  words  *  of  David '  are  separated 
from  the  word  '  Psalm  '  with  which  they  are  usually  joined,  and 
between  them  is  another  description  of  the  lyric,  with  a  different 
word  to  describe  it,  this  being  the  only  instance  in  Book  I  in 
which  this  word  Shir,  or  '  Song,'  is  found. 

If  the  title  be  taken  as  one  whole,  it  can  only  mean  that  the  Psalm 
was  originally  composed  by  David  either  (i)  at  the  dedication,  not 
of  the  temple,  but  of  the  site  of  the  temple  at  the  threshing-floor  of 
Oman,  after  the  pestilence  described  in  i  Chron.  xxi.  28,  or  (2) 
at  the  dedication  of  his  own  palace  in  Zion,  see  2  Sam.  v.  11. 
There  is  serious  objection  to  both  these  explanations.     The  first 


152  THE   PSALMS  30.  2,3 

2  O  Lord  my  God, 

I  cried  unto  thee,  and  thou  hast  healed  me. 

3  O  Lord,  thou  hast  brought  up  my  soul  from  Sheol : 

was  not,  properly  speaking,  the  dedication  of  a  house,  though  in 
I  Chron.  xxii.  i  David  is  reported  to  have  said,  *  This  is  the  house — 
and  the  altar'  ;  and  in  the  second  case,  David's  palace  was  not, 
properly  speaking,  '  dedicated,'  a  word  Jaeing  employed  which  is 
not  suitable  either  for  a  private  house  or  a  royal  palace.  Further, 
those  who  adopt  this  latter  explanation  as  the  most  probable  are 
obliged  to  suppose  that  at  the  time  David  was  recovering  from 
a  serious  sickness — a  wholly  gratuitous  supposition. 

The  view  is  therefore  generally  accepted  by  later  commentators 
that  the  title  is  composite,  the  words  'a  Song  at  the  Dedication  of 
the  House '  having  been  inserted  later,  and  indicating  not  the 
occasion  of  the  original  composition,  but  the  liturgical  use  to  which 
the  Psalm  was  subsequently  put. 

What  *  house,'  then,  is  intended  ?  We  know  that  in  later  times 
a  Feast  of  Dedication,  mentioned  in  John  x.  22,  was  instituted  by 
Judas  Maccabaeus  to  commemorate  the  purification  of  the  temple 
after  its  desecration  by  Antiochus  Epiphanes,  see  i  Mace.  iv.  59. 
We  know,  moreover,  from  the  Talmud  that  this  Psalm  was  in 
later  times  sung  at  that  festival.  It  is  not  unnatural,  therefore,  to 
conclude  that  this  was  the  occasion  intended  in  the  title.  This  is, 
however,  in  all  probability  not  the  case.  It  would  imply  that  the 
title  of  a  Psalm  in  Book  I  was  thus  somewhat  awkwardly  altered 
after  b.  c.  160— a  perfectly  possible,  but  not  probable,  supposition. 
It  is  much  more  likely  that  the  Psalm  was  adapted  for  use  at  the 
dedication  of  the  second  temple  under  Ezra,  when  we  are  told 
that  the  people  *  kept  the  dedication  of  this  house  of  God  with 
joy'  (vi.  16).  The  nation  at  that  time  was  Hke  a  sick  man 
recovering  from  a  wellnigh  fatal  illness,  and  other  Psalms  show 
that  this  figure  of  speech  came  naturally  to  the  lips  of  those  who 
had  just  returned  from  captivity  and  desired  to  praise  God  for 
deliverance.  If  this  was  so,  and  the  title  '  for  the  dedication'  pre- 
fixed soon  after  the  Exile,  when  Book  I  was  collected,  it  is  easy  to 
understand  the  use  made  of  it  in  later  times. 

The  outline  of  the  Psalm  is  clear.  In  verses  1-3  the  Psalmist 
praises  God  for  recovered  health  ;  in  4-6  he  generalizes,  calling 
on  others  to  recognize  similar  manifestations  of  Divine  goodness ; 
in  7-10  he  recounts  his  own  experience  in  greater  detail ;  while  in 
II,  12  he  resolves  that  his  thanksgiving  shall  be  rendered  not  onh' 
with  his  lips  but  in  his  life. 

1-3.  Thou  hast  drawn  me  up  :  from  the  depths  of  suffering,  or 
humiliation,  or  despair — or  from  the  gates  of  death.  The  word  is 
applicable  to  any  of  these  experiences,  but  most  appropriate  in  the 


THE   PSALMS  30.  4-6  153 

Thou  hast  kept  me  alive,  that  I  should  not  go  down  to 

the  pit. 
Sing  praise  unto  the  Lord,  O  ye  saints  of  his, 
And  give  thanks  to  his  holy  name. 
For  his  anger  is  but  for  a  moment ; 
In  his  favour  is  life  : 
Weeping  may  tarry  for  the  night, 
But  joy  Cometh  in  the  morning. 
As  for  me,  I  said  in  my  prosperity, 
I  shall  never  be  moved. 


last.  The  deliverance  from  the  malignity  of  foes  who  would  have 
rejoiced  at  the  Psalmist's  calamity  does  not  sound  natural  in  our 
ears,  if  the  recovery  was  simply  from  sickness.  But  other  Psalms, 
and  Eastern  experience  generally,  show  that  an  almost  savage 
delight  in  the  personal  misfortunes  of  an  enemy  was  usual  enough. 
God's  raising  up  of  the  sufferer  from  a  dying  bed  was  a  proof  of 
personal  favour  which  would  silence  heartless  foes. 

4.  The  saints  in  this  verse  are  those  who  are  ccnnected  with 
Jehovah  by  covenant-bonds  and  have  made  proof  of  His  gracious 
fidelity  to  His  promises.     Compare  Ps.  1.  5. 

to  his  holy  name:  lit.  'to  the  memorial  of  his  holiness.' 
History  is  His  monument  and  lasting  memorial.  It  is  the  recollec- 
tion of  the  self-manifestation  which  God  has  made  of  Himself 
which  prompts  the  thanksgiving  :  God's  '  name  '  is  the  expression 
of  that  manifestion,  and  '  holiness  '  is  the  sum  of  His  attributes. 

5.  Render  the  second  clause,  with  R.  V.  marg.,  'His  favour  is 
for  a  life  time.'  This  preserves  the  parallelism,  though  the  extreme 
brevity  of  the  original  makes  it  quite  possible  that  the  antithesis 
implied  in  the  text  of  A.  V.  and  R.  V.  gives  the  author's 
meaning. 

The  metaphor  in  the  latter  part  of  the  verse  is  beautiful,  and  only 
partially  brought  out  even  in  R.  V.  It  runs,  '  Weeping  may  be 
a  guest  for  the  night,  but  in  the  morning — is  a  ringing  cry  of  joy  I ' 
But  the  English  reader  must  understand  that  for  this  clumsy 
paraphrase  in  eighteen  words  the  original  has  only  five.  The 
*  morning  of  joy '  is  frequently  referred  to  in  the  Psalms;  see  xc. 
14  and  cxliii.  8. 

6.  A  chapter  from  past  history.  Time  was,  says  the  Psalmist, 
when  I  knew  the  proverbial  ease  and  security  of  the  prosperous. 
The  rich  fool  in  our  Lord's  parable  is  but  the  type  of  all  who 
in  the  abundance  of  worldly  possessions  forget  their  dependence 


154  THE   PSALMS  30.  7-11 

7  Thou,  Lord,  of  thy  favour  hadst  made  my  mountain  to 

stand  strong : 
Thou  didst  hide  thy  face  ;  I  was  troubled. 

8  I  cried  to  thee,  O  Lord  ; 

And  unto  the  Lord  I  made  supplication  : 

9  What  profit  is  there  in  my  blood,  when  I  go  down  to 

the  pit  ? 

Shall  the  dust  praise  thee  ?  shall  it  declare  thy  truth  ? 
[o  Hear,  O  Lord,  and  have  mercy  upon  me : 

Lord,  be  thou  my  helper. 
I  Thou  hast  turned  for  me  my  mourning  into  dancing ; 

on  God,  and  imagine  that  nothing  can  shake  their  well-grounded 
self-confidence. 

7.  The  former  clause  of  this  verse  is  not  easy  to  translate  as  it 
stands  ;  the  versions  vary,  and  the  Targum  paraphrases.  The 
meaning  of  *  Thou  hadst  established  strength  for  my  mountain  ' 
is  clear  enough,  though  in  all  probability  the  text  should  be 
altered  so  as  to  give,  '  Thou  hadst  made  me  to  stand  upon  strong 
mountains.' 

A  moment— and  all  is  changed.  The  hiding  of  God's  face 
changes  the  landscape  of  the  life  more  than  the  obscuration  of  the 
sun  changes  the  aspect  of  the  fields.  The  Psalmist  does  not  say 
what  happened  in  his  life  :  it  was  probably  a  sudden  and  severe 
sickness,  but  he  was  made  to  quail  with  a  consternation  and 
bewilderment  which  our  English  word  trotibled  feebly  expresses. 

8.  We  are  reminded  of  Hezekiah's  plea  in  Isa.  xxxviii.  Both 
he  and  the  Psalmist  had  learned  the  lesson  of  affliction  and  the  true 
way  in  which  to  use  it.  The  tense  of  Z  cried  takes  the  writer 
and  reader  back  very  vividly  to  the  scene  as  enacted :  it  might  be 
paraphrased,  '  Behold  me  chying  ! ' 

9.  The  same  view  of  death  is  implied  here  which  meets  us  in  the 
sixth  and  several  other  Psalms,  as  well  as  in  the  dirge  of  Hezekiah. 
Life  in  Sheol  is  not  worthy  to  be  called  life,  and  if  God  remove 
His  servant  thither  He  will  lose  His  'little  meed  of  human 
praise.' 

11.  Again  the  transition  is  sudden,  a  revolution  is  accomplished 
by  the  appearance  of  the  sun  from  behind  the  cloud.  The  render- 
ing, 'Thou  didst  turn— didst  loose- didst  gird,' points  more  directly 
to  the  moment  of  deliverance. 

The  language  is,  of  course,  figurative,  Calvin,  who  does  not 
accept    the    interpretation   of  a   literal    recovery   from   sickness, 


THE    PSALMS  30.  12— 31.  i  155 

Thou  hast  loosed  my  sackcloth,  and  girded  me  with 

gladness : 
To  the  end  that  my  glory  may  sing  praise  to  thee,  and  12 

not  be  silent. 
O  Lord  my  God,  I  will  give  thanks  unto  thee  for  ever. 

For  the  Chief  Musician.     A  Psalm  of  David.  31 

In  thee,  O  Lord,  do  I  put  my  trust ;  let  me  never  be    i 
ashamed : 

comments  that  it  is  unlikely  that  David  would  wear  sackcloth  on 
a  sick-bed.  But  the  expression  is  proverbial,  like  the  'garland  for 
ashes '  in  Isa.  Ixi.  3.  This  does  not,  of  course,  exclude  Calvin's 
point  that  the  Psalmist  mourned  as  a  true  penitent  before  God. 

12.  My  glory  :  i.  e.  my  soul,  as  man's  special  treasure  and  title 
to  honour.  The  resolution  with  which  the  Psalm  closes  is 
obviously  the  utterance  of  a  man  who  wishes  to  prove  in  practice 
as  long  as  he  lives  the  reality  of  his  gratitude  to  the  '  God  of  his 
salvation.* 

Psalm  XXXI.     Prayerful  Surrender  into 
tHE  Hands  of  God. 

Tradition  assigns  this  Psalm  to  David.  The  title  in  the  LXX 
ascribes  it  to  a  period  of  'extreme  fear,'  which  is  supposed  to  be 
that  of  his  stay  in  the  wilderness  of  Maon  (i  Sam.  xxiii.  26; 
compare  the  '  alarm '  of  verse  22  in  the  Psalm\  But  there  are 
many  points  of  parallel  with  passages  in  Jeremiah.  The  whole 
situation  described,  as  well  as  the  plaintive  tone  in  the  writing, 
suggest  rather  the  circumstances  of  Jeremiah's  time,  while  Magor- 
Missabih  (verse  13)  is  a  phrase  indissolubly  associated  with  that 
prophet :  compare  Jer.  vi.  25,  xx,  3,  10,  &c.  The  similarities  in 
phraseology  may  be  traced  in  detail ;  specimens  may  be  found 
in  verse  10  compared  with  Jer.  xx.  18,  and  in  verse  22  compared 
with  Lam.  iii.  54.  It  is  known  that  Jeremiah's  writings  are  full 
of  reminiscences  of  other  authors,  and  the  prophet  may  have  been 
quoting  the  Psalmist,  but  the  probability  is  that  the  Psalm  itself 
emanates  from  the  later  period.  There  is  no  reason,  with  Ewald, 
to  suppose  that  Jeremiah  himself  was  the  author. 

The  conjecture  has  been  advanced  that  the  paragraph  9-18,  the 
tone  of  which  differs  markedly  from  the  earlier  and  later  portions 
of  the  Psalm,  is  of  later  origin,  whilst  the  rest  is  Davidic. 
A  change  of  mood,  as  we  have  repeatedly  seen,  does  not  impl^^ 
a  change  of  author.  None  the  less  it  is  quite  possible  that  in  this 
case  a  'Davidic'  Psalm  of  great  vigour  and  buoj^ancy  has  been 


156  THE   PSALMS  31.  2-5 

Deliver  me  in  thy  righteousness. 

2  Bow  down  thine  ear  unto  me  ;  deliver  me  speedily  : 
Bethoutomea  strong  rock,  an  house  of  defence  to  save  me. 

3  For  thou  art  my  rock  and  my  fortress ; 

Therefore  for  thy  name's  sake  lead  me  and  guide  me. 

4  Pluck  me  out  of  the  net  that  they  have  laid  privily  for  me ; 
For  thou  art  my  strong  hold. 

5  Into  thine  hand  I  commend  my  spirit : 

adapted  for  use  in  a  later  period  of  national  trouble.  If  such 
a  practice  of  modification  was  at  all  frequent— and  there  are  good 
reasons  for  supposing  this — the  present  case  would  appear  to 
aftbrd  a  good  example. 

In  any  case  the  divisions  of  the  Psalm  are  very  clearly  marked. 
The  first  section,  verses  i-8,  recognizes  past  mercies  and  contains 
prayers  for  deliverance,  whilst  in  the  last,  verses  19-24,  gratitude 
predominates  over  petition.  The  middle  section,  verses  9-18, 
breathes  a  plaintive  plea  for  help  in  the  extremity  of  suffering, 
such  as  can  hardly  under  any  circumstances  have  come  from 
David's  pen. 

1.  Render,  'In  thee  have  I  taken  refuge.*  The  often-repeated 
plea  that  the  Psalmist  may  not  be  ashamed  implies  partly  the  feai* 
of  disappointment  and  loss  of  faith  within,  occasioned  by  God's 
apparent  desertion  ;  partly  to  the  anticipated  triumph  without,  of 
those  who  had  set  themselves  against  God  and  the  servant  of  God. 
Compare  xxii.  7  f.  God's  rig-hteousness  is  pledged  to  the  defence 
of  the  right,  and  upon  this  the  Psalmist  rests  in  confidence. 

2,  3.  It  is  a  shallow  criticism  to  urge  that  if  God  actually  is 
a  stronghold  for  His  servants  they  need  not  pray  that  He  would 
be  such.  On  the  contrary,  these  words  express  the  very  spirit 
of  true  prayer,  which  does  not  seek  to  change  the  nature  or  to 
bend  the  will  of  an  All-gracious  as  well  as  an  All-wise  God,  but 
which  implores  that  the  Divine  Will  may  manifest  the  Divine 
Nature  in  the  supplicant's  behalf. 

Hence,  in  the  latter  part  of  verse  3,  some  translate,  *  Thou  wilt 
lead  me  and  guide  me.'  Whether  the  words  form  a  petition  or 
a  statement,  they  express  trustful  confidence. 

4.  The  metaphors  here,  if  closely  pressed,  are  somewhat  mixed. 
In  the  former  clause  the  Psalmist  is  caught  in  the  snare  of  the 
fowler,  in  the  latter  he  flies  for  refuge  from  an  enemy  into  a  fastness. 
But  the  figures  in  these  often-recurring  petitions  have  passed 
almost  into  the  language  of  ordinary  life  ;  they  are  graphic  current 
expressions,  not  to  be  elaborated  into  similes. 

6.  An  often-quoted  verse,  rendered  sacred  to  Christians  by  the 


THE   PSALMS  31.  6-9  157 

Tliou  hast  redeemed  me,  O  Lord,  thou  God  of  truth. 

I  hale  them  that  regard  lying  vanities  :  6 

But  I  trust  in  the  Lord. 

i  will  be  glad  and  rejoice  in  thy  mercy :  S' 

For  thou  hast  seen  my  affliction  ; 

'i'hou  hast  known  my  soul  in  adversities  : 

And  thou  hast  not  shut  me  up  into  the  hand  of  the  enemy;  8 

Thou  hast  set  my  feet  in  a  large  place. 

Have  mercy  upon  me,  O  Lord,  for  I  am  in  distress  :        9 

Saviour's  use  of  it  upon  the  cross.  Saints  of  all  ages  have  sought 
thus  to  follow  their  Master  at  the  approach  of  death,  and  no  words 
can  be  more  appropriate  than  these  when  the  moment  of  'yielding 
up  the  spirit '  draws  near.  But  they  were  not  originally  written 
with  this  view,  and  should  be  read  in  the  light  of  active  service, 
as  well  as  in  that  of  resignation  to  an  inevitable  lot.  The  life 
which  was  originally  received  from  God,  which  has  been,  so  to 
speak,  restored  in  past  deliverances  when  God  has  redeemed  it 
from  destiniction,  is  here  by  an  act  of  faith  placed  in  God's  hands, 
in  the  confidence  that  He  will  defend  and  preserve  it  again. 

6.  This  verse  points  rather  to  the  time  of  Jeremiah  than  to  that 
of  David.  Lyiugr  vanities,  lit.  'empty  nothings,'  refers  to  idols 
and  idol- worship.  See  Jer.  viii.  19,  where  the  parallel  word  is 
'graven  images,'  and  x.  8,  where  *  doctrine  of  vanities'  means  that 
those  who  worship  '  stocks  and  stones'  are  likely  to  be  'wooden' 
and  insensate,  as  a  stream  cannot  rise  above  its  source.  The  LXX 
and  other  versions  follow  another  reading,  'Thou  hast  hated'; 
either  gives  good  sense. 

The  prayer  of  Jonah  contains  the  characteristic  phrase  of  this 
verse,  but  it  is  impossible  to  adduce  evidence  as  to  the  relative 
date  of  the  Psalm  embodied  in  the  prophecy  and  that  contained  in 
the  Psalter. 

*J.  Some  render  this  as  prayer,  '  Let  me  be  glad,'  i.  e.  '  Do  thou 
help  me  to  rejoice,'  and  the  following  clauses  as  prophetic  perfects, 
only  anticipatory  of  deliverance  to  come.  But  the  simpler  meaning 
is  the  better.  The  Psalmist  is  recording  actual  mercies  in  the 
past,  and  rousing  his  own  soul  to  joy  in  the  retrospect. 

8.  The  'large  room'  is,  of  course,  the  wide  and  open  space  which 
stands  for  freedom,  power  of  expatiation,  gracious  opportunity 
and  a  clear  course  for  action.  See  xviii.  19  and  many  similar 
passages.     'Broad  space'  would  be  a  better  translation. 

9.  The  literary  question  raised  in  the  Introduction  concerning 
this  and  the  following  verses  is  subordinate,  and  perhaps  can 


158  THE  PSALMS  31.  lo,  n 

Mine  eye  wasteth  away  with  grief,  yea^  my  soul  and  my 
body. 

10  For  my  life  is  spent  with  sorrow,  and  my  years  with  sighing : 
My  strength  faileth  because  of  mine  iniquity,  and  my 

bones  are  wasted  away. 

1 1  Because  of  all  mine  adversaries  I  am  become  a  reproach, 
Yea,  unto  my  neighbours  exceedingly,  and  a  fear  to  mine 

acquaintance  : 
They  that  did  see  me  without  fled  from  me. 

never  be  settled.  Whether  a  hymn  containing  many  stanzas, 
describing  different  and  apparently  incompatible  moods,  was 
written  by  one  author  at  one  time,  as  embodying  diversified 
experience,  or  by  the  same  author  at  different  times,  or  by 
different  authors  expressing  the  same  deep  religious  confidence 
under  widely  differing  circumstances,  can  only  be  determined  by 
fuller  knowledge  than  we  possess  in  the  case  of  the  Psalms.  The 
line  of  interpretation  adopted  in  Ps.  xxvii  holds  good  here. 
The  Psalm  now  is  one  whole,  and  if  it  be  read  as  such, 
verses  9-18  describe  the  misery  of  the  present  in  sharp  contrast 
with  the  remembered  mercy  and  joy  of  the  past. 

9.  The  physical  marks  of  deep  sorrow  are  here  enumerated, 
the  sinking  of  the  eyes  and  the  wasting  of  the  frame.  These  need 
not  be  literally  understood,  though  Jeremiah  and  other  sufferers 
of  his  time  were  not  unacquainted  with  such  experiences. 

10.  Interpreters  differ  as  to  whether  the  word  translated 
iniquity  points  to  some  secret  sin  which  the  Psalmist  confesses 
as  his  worst  trouble,  or  whether,  with  LXX,  Syr.,  and  other 
versions,  it  should  be  understood,  like  all  the  other  clauses,  of 
'affliction.'  If  sin  be  intended,  this  is  the  one  note  of  the  kind  in 
a  plea  which  is  emphatically  that  of  a  man  found  faithful  among 
the  faithless. 

11.  The  clause  Because  of  all  mine  adversaries  reads 
awkwardly,  and  a  different  arrangement  of  clauses  has  been 
suggested,  as  well  as  sundry  emendations  of  the  text.  But  it 
expresses  in  a  terse  and  somewhat  abrupt  form  the  reason  of  the 
Psalmist's  desertion  by  his  friends.  The  persecuted  man  soon 
becomes  unpopular,  even  amongst  those  who  ought  to  know  his 
character  and  judge  him  fairly.  Three  concentric  circles  are 
described — neighbours,  acquaintances,  and  chance  onlookers  ;  he 
is  shunned  by  all  alike,  as  a  man  out  of  favour  with  the  authorities, 
perhaps  under  Divine  condemnation.  Jeremiah  speaks  of  being 
made   a   laughing-stock   to  some   of  his   friends,   whilst   others 


THE  PSALMS  31.  12-16  159 

I  am  forgotten  as  a  dead  man  out  of  mind :  12 

I  am  like  a  broken  vessel. 

For  I  have  heard  the  defaming  of  many,  13 

Terror  on  every  side  : 

While  they  took  counsel  together  against  me, 

They  devised  to  take  away  my  life. 

But  I  trusted  in  thee,  O  Lord  :  14 

I  said,  Thou  art  my  God. 

My  times  are  in  thy  hand  :  15 

Deliver  me  from  the  hand  of  mine  enemies,  and  from 

them  that  persecute  me. 
Make  thy  face  to  shine  upon  thy  servant :  16 

Save  me  in  thy  lovingkindness. 

denounced  him  and  exulted  over  every  trip  he  made  ;  his  *  familiar 
friends'  watched  '  for  his  halting,'  xx.  7,  10. 

12.  Neglect  has  reached  such  a  point  that  it  is  almost  worse 
than  persecution.  Who  cares  for  a  dead  man,  or  a  potsherd  left 
in  the  dungheap  ? 

13.  Magor-missabib  may  have  been  a  proverb.  Terror  on 
every  side  was  not  a  rare  phenomenon  in  the  chequered  history 
of  Israel.  The  name  was  given  in  threatening  derision  to  Pashhur, 
who  was  to  be  a  terror  to  himself  and  to  all  his  friends,  Jer.  xx. 
3,  4  ;  but  the  phrase  is  also  used  to  describe  the  desolation  of 
Jerusalem  after  the  Babylonish  invasion  in  Lam.  ii.  22,  and  the 
individual  saint  had  often  occasion  to  employ  it  as  too  aptly 
descriptive  of  his  condition.  Hence  we  cannot  say  that  the 
Psalmist  borrowed  it  from  the  prophet,  or  vice  versa. 

14.  Render,  'But  I— I  trust  in  Thee,  O  Jehovah.'  The  Psalmist 
is  now  turning  again  to  the  source  of  strength  of  which  he  had 
sung  in  the  first  stanza ;  but  at  present  only  in  resignation  and 
prayer  ;  rejoicing  comes  later. 

15.  16.  My  times:  the  plural  seems  to  refer  especially  to 
what  we  call  crises  or  epochs  in  life,  when  there  is  special  need  of 
help,  or  special  comfort  in  the  thought  that  all  are  under  the 
control  of  a  God  of  love.  Or  the  phrase  may  point  only  to  life  as 
a  whole  :  see  i  Chron.  xxix.  30,  where  we  read  of  the  acts  of 
David  '  and  the  times  that  went  over  him.' 

Three  prayers  follow — for  deliverance,  for  Divine  favour,  and  for 
'  salvation '  in  the  larger  sense  of  the  word.  The  petition.  Make 
thy  ft,ce  to  shine,  used  in  the  priestly  benediction  of  Num.  vi.  25, 
is  often  found  on  the  lips  of  O.  T.  saints*     Compare  Ps.  Ixvii. 


i6o  THE   PSALMS  31.  17-20 

1 7  Let  me  not  be  ashamed,  O  Lord  ;    for  I  have  called 

upon  thee : 
Let  the  wicked  be  ashamed,  let  them  be  silent  in  Sheol. 

18  Let  the  lying  lips  be  dumb  ; 

Which  speak  against  the  righteous  insolently, 
With  pride  and  contempt. 

19  Oh  how  great  is  thy  goodness,  which  thou  hast  laid  up 

for  them  that  fear  thee, 
Which  thou  hast  wrought  for  them  that  put  their  trust 
in  thee,  before  the  sons  of  men  ! 

20  In  the  covert  of  thy  presence  shalt  thou  hide  them  from 

the  plottings  of  man  : 
Thou  shalt  keep  them  secretly  in  a  pavilion  from  the 
strife  of  tongues. 

17,  18.  These  verses  form  a  link  with  the  opening  of  the  Psalm, 
and  help  to  maintain  its  unity.  Some  read  the  tenses  as  futures— 
'  I  shall  not  be  ashamed,'  &c.,  but  at  this  point  the  Psalmist 
seems  still  to  be  in  the  mood  of  prayer.  The  words  of  his  wicked 
oppressors  are  marked  by  (i)  falsehood,  (2)  pride,  (3)  contempt  : 
well  may  he  long  that  such  lips  should  be  silenced  by  the  only 
power  that  can  control  them. 

19.  Once  again  the  music  changes.  It  is  as  if  a  fuller  revelation 
had  been  made  of  '  the  other  side  of  cloudland,'  and  the  thought  of 
the  storehouse  of  Divine  grace  and  all  that  it  contains  of  succour 
banishes  fear  and  sorrow. 

The  last  clause  before  the  sons  of  men  reads  somewhat 
awkwardly  in  our  version.  It  depends  upon  the  verb  wrought, 
and  its  emphatic  position  brings  out  the  truth  that  the  wealth  in 
the  storehouse  is  available  and  producible  in  times  of  need,  so  that 
the  most  sceptical  must  acknowledge  its  pwwer  and  value.  Render, 
*  Dealt  out  unto  them  that  take  refuge  in  Thee— in  the  sight  of  the 
children  of  men,' 

20.  The  'hiding'  is  suggested  by  the  'taking  refuge'  of  the 
last  verse.  If  the  harsh  and  arrogant  voices  of  evil-doers  are  not 
at  once  silenced,  God's  servant  has  a  quiet  retreat  in  which  he 
may  be  preserved  from  danger,  forget  his  trouble,  and  be  strength- 
ened for  further  service.  God's  presence  is  such  a  pavilion  for 
the  righteous.  Many  commentators  emphasize  the.  paradox  of 
being  hidden  in  light,  but  the  thought  of  the  brightness  of  the 
Divine  Face  and  Presence  seems  for  the  moment  to  have  given 


THE   PSALMS  31.  21-24  161 

Blessed  be  the  Lord  ;  21 

For  he  hath  shewed  me  his  marvellous  lovingkindness 

in  a  strong  city. 
As  for  me,  I  said  in  my  haste,  I  am  cut  off  from  before  22 

thine  eyes : 
Nevertheless  thou  heardest  the  voice  of  my  supplications 

when  I  cried  unto  thee. 
O  love  the  Lord,  all  ye  his  saints :  23 

The  Lord  preserveth  the  faithful. 
And  plentifully  rewardeth  the  proud  doer. 
Be  strong,  and  let  your  heart  take  courage,  24 

All  ye  that  hope  in  the  Lord. 

place  to  the  protection  of  His  embrace  and  the  shelter  enjoyed  by 
those  admitted  to  intimate  communion  with  Him. 

21.  If  this  verse  records  actual  history  it  can  hardly  have  been 
written  at  the  same  time  as  verses  g  and  12,  unless  a  long  and 
chequered  experience  is  as  it  were  dramatized  by  the  Psalmist 
and  presented  in  a  series  of  pictures. 

in  a  strong'  city :  not  to  be  understood  literally,  either  of 
David  in  Ziklag  or  of  Jeremiah  in  Jerusalem,  but  generally  and 
metaphorically  of  that  '  safe  stronghold '  which  God  continually 
provides  for  those  who  trust  Him, 

22.  in  my  haste  :  rather,  '  alarm,'  see  R.  V.  marg.  Both  LXX 
and  Jerome  use  words  which  imply  extreme  fear,  that  measure  of 
'aflfright' which  deprives  a  man  of  his  senses.  'Haste'  is  an 
altogether  inadequate  rendering,  and  the  whole  verse  implies  peril 
which  had  reduced  the  Psalmist  to  utter  despair.  His  momentary 
loss  of  faith  and  hope  did  not,  however,  prevent  him  from  crying 
for  help,  and  he  regards  it  as  *  marvellous  lovingkindness'  that  God 
heard  and  succoured  him. 

23.  24.  Such  experiences  warrant  the  Psalmist  in  encouraging 
and  exhorting  others.  Preserveth  the  faithful  is  probably  the 
correct  translation,  not  '  keepeth  faithfulness'  as  in  R.  V.  marg. 
The  proud  doer  is  the  antithesis  of  the  faithful  man  ;  self-confi- 
dence is  asso( 
righteousness. 

Those  who  hope  in  Jehovah  wait  for  Him  (marg.),  for  *if  we 
hope  for  that  we  see  not,  then  do  we  with  patience  wait  for  it.' 
Those  addressed  in  the  last  verse  formed  apparently  in  the  time 
of  the  Psalmist  a  class — probably  a  small  band — who  were  content 
to  Miope  and  quietly  wait  for  the  salvation  of  Jehovah'  (Lam.  iii. 

M 


i62  THE    PSALMS  32.  i 

32  A  Psalm  of  David.     Maschil. 

I  Blessed  is  he  whose  transgression  is  forgiven,  whose  sin 
is  covered. 

26).  The  lying  lips  v/ere  not  yet  silent,  and  the  word  of  encour- 
agement from  one  w^ho  had  found  refuge  in  the  '  secret  pavilion  ' 
and  the  '  strong  city '  forms  an  appropriate  close  to  a  Psalm  which 
abundantly  illustrates  the  tenacity  and  triumph  of  faith. 

Psalm  XXXII.     The  Joy  of  the  Forgiven  Sinner. 

The  second  of  the  seven  *  penitential '  Psalms.  It  exhibits  more 
of  the  mystic  joys  of  penitence  than  Ps.  vi  or  Ps.  xxxviii,  and  is  in 
its  spirit  akin  to  Ps.  cxxx.  All  the  older  commentators  and  many 
even  of  modern  critics  allow  it  to  be  Davidic,  or  at  least  find  its 
language  to  be  appropriate  in  David's  lips  after  his  great  sin  in  the 
matter  of  Bath-sheba  and  Uriah.  It  is  clear,  however,  that  this 
Psalm  does  not  portray  the  bitterness  of  soul  felt  by  the  newly 
awakened  conscience,  nor  the  contrite  anguish  of  the  spirit 
overwhelmed  with  self-reproach  at  the  thought  of  heinous  sin. 
The  man  who  wrote  it  must  have  passed  through  such  experi- 
ences, but  they  could  hardly  have  been  very  recent,  and  he  has 
certainly  emerged  from  them  into  the  freedom  and  sunshine  of 
pardon.  The  modern  tendency— illustrated  by  Canon  Cheyne 
amongst  others — to  treat  such  a  Psalm  as  this  as  '  principally  if 
not  exclusively  national '  is  surely  mistaken.  Such  an  interpreta- 
tion empties  the  words  of  their  simple  and  natural  meaning,  and 
strikes  a  chill  into  the  heart  of  the  most  spiritual  religion  of  the 
O.  T.  That  a  '■  pious  Israelite '  of  post-Exilic  days  in  recounting 
his  own  experiences  should  think  also  of  '  every  one  that  is  godly ' 
is  quite  intelligible,  but  confession,  contrition  and  the  joy  of 
pardon  are  primarily  individual,  and  it  is  only  in  a  secondary 
though  doubtless  a  real  sense  that  the  words  which  express  these 
feelings  apply  to  the  community. 

The  opening  of  the  Psalm,''verses  i  and  2,  describes  the  blessed- 
ness of  forgiveness  ;  the  next  three  verses  recount  the  Psalmist's 
deep  and  sore  grief  over  his  sin,  till  he  brought  it  in  confession  to 
God  and  was  pardoned.  Then  he  generalizes  in  verses  6-10. 
showing  the  folly  of  hardening  the  heart  against  a  God  so 
graciously  ready  to  receive  all  who  turn  to  Him  in  penitence,  and 
(verse  11)  the  unspeakable  happiness  of  those  who  know  Jehovah 
as  their  God. 

For  the  term  '  Maschil  *  see  Introd.  p.  16.  It  is  not  probable 
that  the  word  refers  to  the  contents  of  the  Psalm,  as  if  it  were 
*  didactic'  or  'contemplative'  in  character,  but  if  'Maschil'  be 
derived  from  a  root  which  indicates  *  skill,'  it  may  have  a  musical 
reference    and    indicate   a   more   artistic   and    elaborate    musical 


THE   PSALMS  32.  2-4  163 

Blessed  is  the  man  unto  whom  the  Lord  imputeth  not  2 

iniquity, 
And  in  whose  spirit  there  is  no  guile. 
When  I  kept  silence,  my  bones  waxed  old  3 

Through  my  roaring  all  the  day  long. 
For  day  and  night  thy  hand  was  heavy  upon  me :  4 


accompaniment  than  usual.     See  also  Psalm  xlvii.  7,  where  the 
word  is  rendered  '  with  understanding,'  or  *  in  a  skilful  Psalm.' 

1,  2.  The  word  translated  blessed  does  not  necessarily  imply 
the  inward  and  spiritual  joy  of  the  N.T.  beatitude.  Here  it 
conveys  a  shade  of  meaning  absent  from  Ps.  i.  i,  where  the 
outward  lot  and  condition  of  the  righteous  man  is  the  main 
theme. 

Three  kinds  of  deliverance  are  mentioned,  all  denoting  removal 
of  the  guilt  of  sin.  The  distinction  between  the  three  words 
transgression,  sin,  and  iniquity  should  probably  not  be  pressed, 
though  etymologically  they  indicate  respectively  disobedience, 
failure,  and  perversity.  But  it  is  well  to  note  that  at  this  stage  in 
the  history  of  Israel  the  meaning  of  forgiveness  was  so  well  under- 
stood. It  is  here  described  as  {a)  the  lifting  of  a  burden  ;  {b)  the 
protecting  from  deserved  wrath  ;  (c)  release  from  a  justly  incurred 
debt.  The  personal  element  in  forgiveness  is  thus  excellently 
brought  out.  Sin  disturbs  the  relation  between  God  and  the 
soul,  it  is  this  which  constitutes  the  essence  of  the  evil,  and  nothing 
but  the  full  restoration  of  that  spiritual  harmony  will  'save'  the 
man,  or  bring  him  into  the  state  of  blessedness  here  described. 

The  last  clause  of  verse  2  is  by  some  interpreted  to  mean  the 
condition  on  which  forgiveness  will  be  granted.  In  that  case  no 
^nile  would  mean  perfect  sincerity  in  confessing  and  forsaking  sin. 
This  seems,  however,  an  inappropriate  climax,  and  the  phrase 
should  be  understood  as  describing  the  clear,  uninterrupted 
communion  with  God  enjoyed  by  the  forgiven  sinner,  when  the 
deceitfulness  and  perverseness  of  sin  has  been  put  away.  It 
corresponds  to  the  '  clean  heart '  of  li.  10.  '  God's  kiss  of  forgive- 
ness sucks  the  poison  from  the  wound  '  (Maclaren). 

3,  4.  A  chapter  from  the  experience  of  one  who  knows.  The  ) 
sufferingof  these  verses  is  caused  by  the  wrong-doer  s  determination 
to  cling  to  his  sin,  his  silence  is  equivalent  to  a  refusal  to  '  cleanse 
the  stuffed  bosom  of  that  perilous  stuff,'  It  is  not  necessary  to 
understand  that  he  passed  through  actual  sickness,  though  the 
picture  of  a  man  groaning  aloud  in  pain,  the  framework  of  his 
body  shaken,  the  vital  juices  parched  with  fever,  seems  at  first  to 
suggest  this.    The  significant  clause  is,  tliy  hand  was  heavy  upon 

M     2 


i64  THE   PSALMS  32.  5,  6 

My  moisture  was  changed  as  with  the  drought  of  summer. 

[Selah 
i  I  acknowledged  my  sin  unto  thee,  and  mine  iniquity 
have  I  not  hid  : 
I  said,  I  will  confess  my  transgressions  unto  the  Lord  ; 
And  thou  forgavest  the  iniquity  of  my  sin.  [Selah 

;  For  this  let  every  one  that  is  godly  pray  unto  thee  in 
a  time  when  thou  mayest  be  found : 
Surely  when  the  great  waters  overflow  they  shall  not 
reach  unto  him. 

me.  Whether  conscience  was  troubled  within,  or  sickness  laid 
the  offender  low,  or  both,  the  Psalmist  recognizes  that  the  process 
of  humbling  was  God's  work.  When  day  and  night  he  obtained 
no  rest  he  recognized  why  and  by  whom  his  heart  was  made 
restless,  as  Augustine— with  whom  this  Psalm  was  a  favourite- 
did  long  afterwards.  This  '  evangelical '  tone  in  the  Psalm 
touches  universal  experience,  when  conscience  is  once  awakened. 
j  5.  The  pathway  to  the  light.  First,  the  truth  must  be  recog- 
'  nized  and  faced.  The  four  clauses  of  this  verse  describe  the  process. 
In  the  first  the  tense  *  I  began  to  acknowledge '  indicates  the 
•  action  in  its  incipiency  and  progress.  We  see  the  penitent  coming, 
and  hear  him  beginning  to  speak.  The  next,  '  I  did  not  hide,' 
describes  a  completed  action.  The  next,  I  said,  Z  will  confess, 
takes  us  back  to  the  inner  movements  of  the  spirit  which  made  the 
confession  complete;  while  the  last  should  be  rendered  And  thou, 

*  thou  didst  forgive  the  iniquity  of  my  sin  ! ' 

This  verse  is  marked  off  by  a  double  Selah — a  musical  interlude 
occurring  before  and  after  it.  It  may  be  conceived  that  in  the 
former  case  the  accompaniment  would  be  rendered  '  piano'  upon 
the  strings,  while  in  the  latter  the  '  loud-sounding  cymbals '  would 
be  needed. 

6.  Per  this  means  *  because  of  this,  because  thou  art  a  gracious 
and  forgiving  God.'  The  word  chasid,  translated  gfodly,  designates 
the  man  who  comes  within  God's  covenant  of  grace — Israel  in  the 
Old  Testament,  all  the  world  in  the  New.  The  Psalmist  bids 
all  such  to  pray,  and  assures  them  that  the  time  of  praying  will  be 

*  a  time  of  finding,'  the  time  of  asking  will  be  a  time  of  acceptance  ; 
see  Ps.  Ixix.  13.  There  may  be  a  hint,  as  in  Isa.  Iv.  6  and  else- 
where, that  sometimes  God  may  not  be  found,  but  that  note  would 
jar  in  this  connexion  ;  and  the  assurance  of  the  latter  clause,  that 
<the  waters  in  full  flood  shall  not  reach  unto  him,'  shows  that  the 
prayer  of  the  penitent  will  assuredly  be  heard. 


THE   PSALMS  32.  7-10  165 

Thou  art  my  hiding  place ;  thou  wilt  preserve  me  from    7 

trouble ; 
Thou  wilt  compass  me  about  with  songs  of  deliverance. 

[Selah 
I  will  instruct  thee  and  teach  thee  in  the  way  which  thou   8 

shalt  go  : 
I  will  counsel  thee  with  mine  eye  upon  thee. 
Be  ye  not  as  the  horse,  or  as  the  mule,  which  have  no    9 

understanding : 
Whose  trappings  must  be  bit  and  bridle  to  hold  them  in, 
Else  they  will  not  come  near  unto  thee. 
Many  sorrows  shall  be  to  the  wicked  :  10 

■7.  Thou  art  my  Mdin?  place,  &c.  A  natural  and  appropriate 
turning  of  the  heart  to  God  in  grateful  recognition.  In  such  / 
matters  it  is  hard  to  speak  of  God  without  speaking  to  Him. 
The  Psalmist  has  found  his  hiding  and  resting  place,  in  it  he  is 
not  only  guarded  from  danger  but  as  it  were  encircled  with 
strains  of  music  and  songs  of  gladness.  Everything  that  happens 
to  him  becomes  an  occasion  of  rejoicing. 

8.  After  an  interlude  the  personal  pronouns  change  again. 
God  speaks,  and  in  response  to  His  servant's  appeal  promises  him^ 
instruction,  counsel,  and  guidance.  The  beautiful  suggestiveness' 
of  A.  v.,  'I  will  guide  thee  with  mine  eye,'  need  not  be  wholly 
lost,  though  R.  V.  shows  that  the  Hebrew  does  not  mean  that 
*a  look  is  enough.'  It  means  that  with  a  Divine  word  of  counsel 
in  the  ear,  and  the  eye  of  Providence  watching  from  above,  the ; 
traveller  in  the  pathway  of  life  will  be  safe. 

9.  But  the  kindliness  and  gentleness  of  God's  guidance  is 
suggested  by  this  verse.  A  true  chasid,  loving  and  beloved, 
should  find  the  glance  of  the  Divine  eye  sufficient  both  for 
warning  and  direction.  The  rendering  of  R.  V.,  Else  they  will 
not  come  near  unto  thee,  has  removed  the  awkwardness  of  A.  V., 
and  made  it  clear  that  the  contrast  lies  between  the  curb  and 
bridle  which  animals  need  if  they  are  to  be  guided  rightly,  and  the 
free  and  unconstrained  service  which  ought  to  be  rendered  by 
a  man  who  is  in  gracious  covenant-relation  with  God.  One  may 
well  compare  the  '  free '  or  '  willing  spirit '  of  Ps.  li.  12,  and  the 
well-known  lines  which  paraphrase  cxvi.  16 : — 

'The  mercy  that  hath  loosed  my  bands  Hath  bound  me   fast 
to  Thee.' 

10.  God  reserves  His  bit  and  bridle,  and  uses  even  scourges 


i66  THE   PSALMS  32.  n— 33.  i 

But  he  that  trusteth  in  the  Lord,  mercy  shall  compass 
him  about. 
1 1  Be  glad  in  the  Lord,  and  rejoice,  ye  righteous : 
And  shout  for  joy,  all  ye  that  are  upright  in  heart. 

33  Rejoice  in  the  Lord,  O  ye  righteous  : 
Praise  is  comely  for  the  upright. 

and  goads,  for  such  as  will  not  be  led  by  kindness.  The  sorrows 
here  mentioned  may  be  viewed  as  punishments  for  evil  committed, 
or  as  chastisements  to  lead  to  a  better  mind.  The  context  seems 
to  show  that  the  former  are  intended.  The  lot  of  the  wicked  is 
strongly  contrasted  with  that  of  the  trustful  and  obedient  man. 
In  verse  7  he  was  represented  as  surrounded  with  songs  of 
triumph,  here  he  is  encompassed  by  God's  lovingkindness.  The 
two  circles  coincide.  He  who  is  girded  with  mercy  is  crowned 
with  joy. 

11.  The  Psalmist  closes  with  an  invitation   corresponding  to 
that  in  verse  6.     There  the  godly  were  bidden  to  pray,  here  they 
are  exhorted  to  rejoice.     Those  who  faithfully  obey  the  former 
)  precept  will  hardly  need  the  latter. 

Psalm  XXXIII.     A  Song  of  National  Deliverance. 

Contrary  to  the  rule  in  the  First  Book,  this  Psalm  is  without 
a  title.  The  only  other  exceptions  are  Pss.  i  and  ii  which  are 
introductory,  and  x  which  is  closely  linked  with  ix.  Thus  this 
Psalm  may  be  styled  the  only  anonymous  one  in  the  body  of  the 
Book.  The  LXX  ascribes  it  to  David.  In  character  also  it  belongs 
to  the  later,  national,  liturgical  psalmody,  of  which  abundant 
examples  are  to  be  found  in  Book  V.  There  is  little  or  nothing 
in  the  Psalm  itself  to  guide  us  as  to  date,  but  the  praise  here 
rendered  to  Jehovah  as  the  God  of  the  whole  earth  and  the  ruler 
of  the  nations  at  large,  and  what  may  be  described  as  the 
'  universalistic '  tone  of  the  Psalm  generally,  would  point  to 
a  comparatively  late  period  for  its  composition. 

It  is  markedly  symmetrical  in  structure.  Between  two  strophes 
of  six  lines  which  begin  and  end  the  Psalm  are  to  be  found 
eight  quatrains.  Thus  verses  1-3  form  an  introduction  ;  verses 
4-19  form  the  body  of  the  Psalm  and  describe  God's  moral 
attributes,  His  work  in  creation,  His  rule  over  the  nations  and 
special  care  of  His  own  people  ;  while  verses  20-22  contain  the 
praise  which  this  favoured  people  in  full  chorus  render  to  Him. 

1.  The  opening  word  translated  Rejoice  implies  a  'ringing 
cry'  of  joy,  a  jubilant  outburst  of  thanksgiving  which  our  English 


THE   PSALMS  33.  2-5  167 

Give  thanks  unto  the  Lord  with  harp : 

Sing  praises  unto  him  with  the  psaltery  of  ten  strings. 

Sing  unto  him  a  new  song ; 

Play  skilfully  with  a  loud  noise. 

For  the  word  of  the  Lord  is  right ; 

And  all  his  work  is  done  in  faithfulness. 

He  loveth  righteousness  and  judgement : 

The  earth  is  full  of  the  lovingkindness  of  the  Lord. 

word  feebly  expresses.  The  praise  in  this  case  is  to  be  offered 
by  those  best  quaUfied  to  present  it,  as  well  as  best  able  to 
appreciate  the  grounds  for  it.  The  rigrhteous  and  the  uprigrht 
are  not  simply  men  who  are  *  of  Israel,'  they  are  the  true  Israel 
of  God. 

2.  Two  musical  instruments  are  named  here,  not  three  as  in 
A.  V.  The  names  in  Hebrew  are  Kinnor  and  nebhel,  the  exact 
meaning  of  which  has  been  much  debated.  But,  if  we  divide 
stringed  instruments  of  the  class  in  question  into  three  types — the 
lyre,  the  lute  or  guitar,  and  the  harp,  there  appears  to  be  strong 
probability  that  the  Kinnor  (in  the  LXX  Kithard)  was  of  the 
lyre-type,  while  the  nebhel  (in  Greek  psaltenott)  was  a  harp. 
That  is,  the  former  was  small,  portable,  having  from  three  to  six 
strings,  a  resonance-body  at  tlie  base  and  cross-bar  at  the  top, 
but  without  the  long  neck,  finger-board,  and  sounding-board  at 
the  back  characteristic  of  the  guitar ;  while  the  latter  was  larger, 
with  strings  varying  in  number  from  six  to  sixteen,  and  it  was 
held  in  one  hand,  whilst  played  upon  with  a  plectrum  in  the  other. 
The  distinction  thus  marked  becomes  clear  enough  in  later  times, 
but  was  probably  not  discernible  in  the  simpler  instruments  of 
a  primitive  age,  and  it  would  be  a  mistake  to  insist  upon  an  exact 
modern  rendering  of  each  Hebrew  word  wherever  it  occurs. 

3.  The  new  song  of  which  we  often  read  in  the  O.T.  frequently 
turns  upon  an  old  theme.  In  a  sense  the  theme  is  always  old — 
the  goodness  and  mercy  of  God  ;  but  the  subject  may  be  either  an 
entirely  new  instance  of  this,  or  former  instances  celebrated  with 
new  music  and  freshly  grateful  hearts. 

In  the  second  clause  are  two  ideas,  'strike  ye  well  the  strings' 
refers  to  the  music — the  main  feature;  'with  joyful  shouting' — 
this  was  of  the  nature  of  accompaniment. 

4,  5.  The  first  theme  of  praise  is  the  moral  character  or  attribute 
of  Jehovah.  Four  words  emphasize  His  righteousness  and  one 
His  love.  His  word  is  '  upright' ;  His  works  are  marked  by  faith- 
fulness. He  loves  righteousness  as  a  principle,  and  judgement 
its  practical  realization.    The  earth  is  full  of  His  lovingkindness. 


i68  THE   PSALMS  33.  6-9 

6  By  the  word  of  the  Lord  were  the  heavens  made  ; 
And  all  the  host  of  them  by  the  breath  of  his  mouth. 

7  He  gathereth  the  waters  of  the  sea  together  as  an  heap : 
He  layeth  up  the  deeps  in  storehouses. 

8  Let  all  the  earth  fear  the  Lord  ; 

Let  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  world  stand  in  awe  of  him. 

9  For  he  spake,  and  it  was  done ; 
He  commanded,  and  it  stood  fast. 

Thus  thought  and  affection,  speech  and  action,  so  far  as  these 
may  be  predicated  of  the  Most  High,  are  characterized  by  that 
perfect  righteousness,  which  nowhere  in  the  Hebrew  conveys  an 
idea  of  'justice'  as  opposed  to  love,  but  like  our  '  equity'  implies 
due  and  kindly  consideration  of  all  the  facts  of  every  case. 

6.  Here  the  Psalmist  goes  back  to  creation  as  supplying  his 
first  illustration.  The  emphasis  laid  upon  the  word  of  God  in 
Gen.  i  is  very  marked  :  the  phrase  '  God  said '  is  often  repeated. 
The  word  for  breath  is  the  same  as  that  for  spirit  in  Gen.  i.  3, 
but  the  ideas  in  the  two  cases  are  quite  different.  Here  it 
corresponds  to  the  spoken  word,  in  Genesis  the  '  breath  of  God  * 
broods  as  a  dove  and  hovers  with  outspread  wings  over  chaos  to 
bring  forth  order  and  life  and  peace.  The  stress  here  lies  upon 
the  fact  that  a  single  spoken  fiat  of  Jehovah  is  mighty  enough  to 
create  all  the  host  of  heaven,  the  celestial  orbs  in  all  their  grandeur 
and  multitude. 

*7.  The  thought  follows  the  creation-narrative,  but  makes  it 
more  definite.  The  '  gathering  of  waters '  and  the  mention  of 
the  deeps  belong  to  Gen.  i,  but  the  idea  of  the  sea  as  an  heap  and 
of  storehouses  is  later.  These  figures  may  be  so  construed  as  to 
be  unpoetical,  especially  if  we  were  to  read  with  several  ancient 
versions  'as  in  a  bottle.'  But,  properlj^  understood,  both  metaphors 
are  apt  and  striking.  The  sea  as  seen  from  the  land  appears  to 
swell  into  a  mass,  and,  as  we  "now  know,  is  actually  gathered  into 
a  mass  by  the  attraction  of  the  moon  ;  while  to  the  primitive  mind 
the  waters  of  ocean  were,  like  the  forces  of  the  wind,  gathered 
in  unimaginable  treasure-houses,  out  of  which  they  were  let  loose 
from  time  to  time  by  supernatural  powers  to  perform  great  deeds, 
now  of  beneficence,  now  of  destruction.  Compare  Jer.  x.  13,  *  He 
bringeth  forth  the  wind  out  of  his  treasuries.' 

8,  9.  A  continuation  of  the  main  thought,  with  its  natural 
conclusion.  One  who  could  '  speak  a  world  from  nought  *  must 
surely  be  had  in  reverence  by  all  His  creatures.  Render,  For  He 
spake,  and  (so)  it  was :  a  reference  to  the  repeated  *  and  it  was 
so'  of  Gen.  i. 


THE   PSALMS  33.  10-15  169 

The  Lord  bringeth  the  counsel  of  the  nations  to  nought :  10 
He  maketh  the  thoughts  of  the  peoples  to  be  of  none 

effect. 
The  counsel  of  the  Lord  standeth  fast  for  ever,  1 1 

The  thoughts  of  his  heart  to  all  generations. 
Blessed  is  the  nation  whose  God  is  the  Lord  ;  1 2 

The  people  whom  he  hath  chosen  for  his  own  inheritance. 
The  Lord  looketh  from  heaven  ;  13 

He  beholdeth  all  the  sons  of  men ; 

From  the  place  of  his  habitation  he  looketh  forth  14 

Upon  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth ; 
He  that  fashioneth  the  hearts  of  them  all,  15 

That  considereth  all  their  works. 


10,  11.  From  creation  the  Psalmist  passes  to  history.  And 
here  the  strange  phenomenon  meets  us  of  the  creature  rebelhng 
against  the  Creator  :  whole  nations  and  peoples  with  counsel 
and  thonglits  of  their  own  opposed  to  those  of  their  Maker. 
There  can  be  no  doubt,  however,  as  to  which  are  stable  and  which 
futile,  which  transient  and  which  permanent.  As  the  heavens 
are  higher  than  the  earth,  so  are  His  thoughts  above  man's,  and 
His  purposes  cannot  fail.  For  '  there  is  no  wisdom  nor  counsel 
nor  understanding  against  the  Lord,'  Prov.  xxi.  30. 

12.  From  a  survey  of  history  at  large  the  Psalmist  turns  to 
that  of  the  chosen  people.  But  he  does  not  here  dwell  in  detail, 
as  do  other  Psalmists,  upon  God's  *  mighty  works '  in  behalf  of 
Israel ;  rather  he  fastens  attention  for  a  moment  upon  the  fact 
that  the  Creator  and  Preserver  of  all  has  deigned  to  choose  one 
nation  for  His  own  special  possession.  The  natural  inference 
comes  later. 

For  the  thought  of  this  verse  compare  'the  song  of  Moses'  in 
Deut.  xxxiii,  especially  verses  26-29  >  ^^^  2  Sam.  vii.  23,  '  What 
one  nation  in  the  earth  is  like  thy  people,  even  Israel/  &c. 

13.  The  connexion  of  thought  is  that  the  God  who  thus 
graciously  cares  for  Israel  is  He  who  '  all  the  earth  surveys/  who 
holds  all  its  inhabitants  in  the  hollow  of  His  hand. 

14.  Render,  '  He  gazeth ' — a  special  word,  illustrated  by 
Jer.  xxxii.  19,  'Whose  eyes  are  open  upon  all  tbe  ways  of  the 
sons  of  men.' 

15.  Render,  'Even  he  who  formeth  the  hearts  of  them  all. 

Who  discerneth  all  their  works.' 


I70  THE   PSALMS  33.  16-19. 

16  There  is  no  king  saved  by  the  multitude  of  an  host : 
A  mighty  man  is  not  delivered  by  great  strength. 

1 7  An  horse  is  a  vain  thing  for  safety : 

Neither  shall  he  deliver  any  by  his  great  power. 

18  Behold,  the  eye  of  the  Lord  is  upon  them  that   fear 

him, 
Upon  them  that  hope  in  his  mercy  -, 

19  To  deliver  their  soul  from  death. 
And  to  keep  them  alive  in  famine. 


He  made  and  understands  the  nature  of  all,  yet  has  deigned 
to  bestow  special  care  on  Israel.  But  the  word  translated  'all' 
means  literally  'together,'  and  conveys  the  idea  of  individual  as 
well  as  universal  knowledge. 

16.  It  is  as  if  the  Psalmist  were  still  following  the  thoughts  of 
Deut.  xxxiii,  'What  people  is  like  thee,  O  Israel?'  Those  who 
trust  to  great  armies  or  valiant  heroes  are  miserably  disappointed. 
Some  find  an  allusion  here  to  Pharaoh  and  his  host  overwhelmed 
in  the  Red  Sea,  but  this  seems  far-fetched,  and  similar  expressions 
are  found  in  Ix.  ii,  12  and  elsewhere.  The  R.  V.  does  not 
attempt  to  preserve  the  parallelism  of  the  original,  in  which  word 
corresponds  to  word — '  the  king '  is  not  saved  *  by  the  greatness  of 
his  army,'  nor  '  the  hero  by  the  greatness  of  his  strength.'  We 
have  no  reason  to  suppose  that  any  special  historical  event  is 
alluded  to  in  either  clause. 

17.  Israel  did  not  usually  employ  war-horses,  but  in  early 
times  entrenched  themselves  in  the  hills  of  Canaan,  and  were  at 
disadvantage  when  facing  the  chariots  and  horses  of  the  Philistines 
and  others  in  the  plains.  The  Egyptian  and  Assyrian  cavalry 
were  very  formidable,  and  the  prophets  denounced  those  who 
were  disposed  to  rely  on  alliance  with  Egypt ;  see  Isa.  xxxi.  i, 
and  compare  Deut.  xvii.  16,  where  the  use  of  horses  is  distinctly 
discouraged.  So  '  the  horse '  came  to  represent  earthly  power 
and  material  resources,  Ps.  xx.  7,  xxi.  31.  For  a  picture  of  the 
war-horse  and  its  'great  strength,' see  the  highly  poetical  and 
spirited  description  in  Job  xxxix.  19-25. 

18.  19.  A  contrast  is  drawn  between  these  vain  grounds  of 
confidence  and  the  care  which  God  exercises  over  those  who 
trust  Him.  The  phrase  them  tliat  fear  Mni,  i.  e.  reverence  and 
obey  Him,  is  synonymous  with  them  that  hope  in  his  mercy. 
These  are  content  to  hope,  and  have  a  right  to  hope,  for  a 
manifestation  of  His  lovingkindness.  Neither  sword  nor  famine 
shall  destroy  them. 


THE   PSALMS  33.  2o~34.  i  171 

Our  soul  hath  waited  for  the  Lord  :  20 

He  is  our  help  and  our  shield. 

For  our  heart  shall  rejoice  in  him,  21 

Because  we  have  trusted  in  his  holy  name. 

Let  thy  mercy,  O  Lord,  be  upon  us,  22 

According  as  we  have  hoped  in  thee. 

A  Psalm  of  David  ;  when  he  changed  his  behaviour  before        34 
Abimelech,  who  drove  him  away,  and  he  departed. 

I  will  bless  the  Lord  at  all  times :  i 


20.  The  last  strophe.  If  the  antiphonal  arrangement  was 
adopted  in  the  previous  couplets  the  whole  choir  would  join  in 
chanting  these  closing  words  of  thanksgiving. 

R.  V.  reads  hatli  waited :  perhaps  better,  '  waiteth  patiently  for 
Jehovah.'  The  spirit  of  the  closing  stanza  implies  that  there  was  still 
need  to  tarry  in  hope.  Further  coincidence  with  Deut.  xxxiii.  29  is 
found  in  the  use  of  the  words  help  and  shield  as  applied  to  God. 

21.  his  holy  name:  the  manifestation  of  the  Divine  character, 
holiness    implying   the   sum   of  all   moral  excellence.     Compare 

Ps.  XXX.  4. 

22.  A  touching  prayer,  often  embodied  in  liturgical  use,  as  at 
the  close  of  the  Te  Deum  and  in  separate  versicles.  No  plea 
is  felt  to  be  more  availing  than  that  the  suppliant  has  waited  and 
hoped  and  trusted.  The  Psalmist,  like  the  prophet,  is  assured 
that  '  they  that  wait  for  Jehovah  shall  not  be  ashamed,'  Isa. 
xlix,  23. 

Psalm  XXXIV.    Joy  in  Jehovah  at  all  Times. 

An  acrostic  Psalm,  the  couplets  in  regular  order  beginning  with 
the  letters  of  the  Hebrew  alphabet  successively;  except  that  Vav 
is  omitted  and  an  additional  couplet  is  found  at  tl;e  end,  beginning 
with  Pe.     In  all  these  respects  it  corresponds  with  Ps.  xxv. 

According  to  the  title,  it  was  written  by  David  at  the  time 
described  in  i  Sam.  xxi.  11,  when  he  feigned  madness  at  the 
court  of  the  Philistine  king.  The  king,  however,  is  called  in  the 
history  Achish,  and  various  conjectures  have  been  made  to  account 
for  the  name  Abimelech  in  the  title.  The  most  plausible  of  these 
is  that  Abimelech,  like  Pharaoh,  may  have  been  the  title  of  a 
dynasty,  while  Achish  was  a  personal  name.  This,  however,  is 
pure  conjecture,  and  the  discrepancy  does  not  strengthen  our  con- 
fidence in  the  trustworthiness  of  the  titles,  which  on  other  grounds 
are  seen  to  be  of  doubtful  authority.     Certainly  we  should  not 


tii  THE   PSALMS  34.  2-5 

His  praise  shall  continually  be  in  my  mouth. 

2  My  soul  shall  make  her  boast  in  the  Lord  : 
The  meek  shall  hear  thereof,  and  be  glad. 

3  O  magnify  the  Lord  with  me, 
And  let  us  exalt  his  name  together. 

4  I  sought  the  Lord,  and  he  answered  me, 
And  delivered  me  from  all  my  fears. 

5  They  looked  unto  him,  and  were  lightened : 
And  their  faces  shall  never  be  confounded. 


expect  a  priori  that  when  in  peril  of  his  life  amongst  the  Philistines 
David  would  write  an  acrostic  poem,  containing  hardly  any  im- 
mediate allusion  to  his  strange  circumstances,  and  couched  in 
a  didactic  style  remarkably  like  the  '  proverbs '  of  later  centuries. 
Delitzsch  thinks  that  the  very  variation  of  names  points  to  an 
independent  line  of  tradition,  and  suggests  the  Annals  of  David, 
one  of  the  sources  from  which  the  Books  of  Samuel  were  compiled. 
It  may  be  so  ;  but  all  critical  probability  points  to  an  error  in  the 
title. 

There  is,  as  might  be  expected  in  an  acrostic,  no  clearly  dis^ 
cernible  outline  of  thought,  but  the  Psalm  divides  itself  naturally 
into  two  parts,  verse  11  beginning  a  didactic  strain,  such  as  a 
teacher  uses  in  addressing  his  disciples. 

1.  Hardly  any  phrase  is  more  characteristic  of  the  Psalter  than 
the  opening  of  this  Psalm.  It  is  the  praise  at  all  times  which  is 
difficult  to  compass,  but  which  is  so  largely  realized  by  the 
Psalmists  as  to  make  Bacon's  contrast  between  '  hearse-like  airs 
and  carols  '  inappropriate.  The  language  of  this  Psalm  covers  all 
kinds  of  experiences. 

2.  Meek  is  perhaps  the  best  translation  open  to  us  for  'anavim. 
But  it  inadequately  conveys  the  idea  of '  the  quiet  in  the  land,' 
who  show  their  fortitude  by  patient  trust  in  Jehovah  when  the 
main  current  of  authority  and  influence  sets  full  against  them. 

3.  The  language  of  these  verses,  inviting  co-operation  and  united 
praise  on  the  part  of  all  those  who  fear  Jehovah,  is  much  more 
appropriate  in  (say)  the  period  of  the  later  Monarchy,  or  the  Exile, 
than  in  the  lips  of  David  addressing  his  followers.  To  '  exalt  the 
name  of  Jehovah  '  is  to  celebrate  His  glory  in  every  way  possible  ; 
as  Delitzsch  expresses  it,  *  to  place  God's  exalted  name  as  high  in 
one's  heart,  in  word,  and  in  deed,  as  it  is  in  itself.' 

4-6.  Three  parallel  statements  are  made  in  these  three  verses, 
which  may  be  compared  and  contrasted.  Experience  is  quoted — 
in  the  first  instance  I,  &c.,  in  the  second  They,  &c.,  in  the  third 


THE   PSALMS  34.  6-8  173 

This  poor  man  cried,  and  the  Lord  heard  him,  6 

And  saved  him  out  of  all  his  troubles. 

The  angel  of  the  Lord  encampeth  round  about  them  7 

that  fear  him. 
And  delivereth  them. 
O  taste  and  see  that  the  Lord  is  good :  8 

*  This  afflicted  man.'  The  modes  of  entreaty  are  (i)  *  sought 
earnestly,*  (2)  looked,  (3)  cried.  The  relief  given  is  described  by 
the  phrases  (i)  '  He  heard  and  delivered '  ;  (2)  'They  were  light- 
ened, and  their  faces  were  not  ashamed  ' ;  (3)  *  Jehovah  heard  and 
saved  him  from  his  troubles.' 

Doubtless  the  person  in  the  first  instance  is  the  Psalmist.  In 
the  second  *  they  '  should  be  understood  impersonally  :  we  have 
no  word  in  English  corresponding  to  the  German  man  and  the 
French  on  ;  or,  as  frequently  in  Hebrew,  the  subject  may  be 
supplied  from  the  predicate  itself — 'They  who  looked,  when  they 
did  so,  were  lightened.'  In  the  third  instance  it  has  been 
supposed  that  *  this  afflicted  one '  means  the  Psalmist,  but  it  is 
much  better  to  undei'stand  it  as  a  particular  example  of  a  general 
principle,  a  case  which  has  happened  again  and  again. 

The  deliverance  from  fear,  the  brightening  of  the  anxious 
countenance  and  banishing  of  disappointment  or  despair,  and  the 
complete  salvation  out  of  all  straits  and  distresses,  are  proofs  of 
Divine  help  in  time  of  need  which  speak  for  themselves. 

7.  The  augrel  of  Jehovali  mentioned  in  a  number  of  passages 
in  the  O.  T.  must  not  be  confounded  with  an  ordinary  single 
messenger  of  the  heavenly  host.  In  Gen.  xvi,  xxii ;  Exod.  iii  ; 
Judges  ii,  v,  vi,  xiii,  and  other  places,  the  phrase  evidently  in- 
dicates a  special  theophany  or  manifestation  of  the  Divine  presence. 
The  being  in  question  is  identified  with  God,  and  exercises  the 
prerogatives  of  God,  yet  he  is  distinct  from  God.  In  Isa.  Ixiii.  9 
he  is  called  'the  angel  of  His  presence,'  and  the  idea  throughout 
seems  to  be  that  a  special  manifestation  was  granted  to  assure 
Israel  that  the  fullness  of  the  Divine  presence  and  favour  was  wilfi 
them.  See  Exod.  xxiii.  20,  xxxii.  34,  and  xxxiii.  14,  15.  A 
careful  reader  will  find  in  the  language  used,  not  an  anticipation 
of  the  Christian  doctrine  of  the  Trinity,  nor  a  distinction  of  persons 
within  the  Godhead,  but  a  preparation  for  a  fuller  idea  of  Deity 
than  the  solitary  God  of  Islam,  a  God  who  reveals  Himself  and 
communicates  Himself,  such  a  God  as  in  the  N.  T.  becomes 
incarnate. 

For  the  notion  of  a  Divine  camp  of  deliverance  compare  Gen. 
xxxii.  a  and  2  Kings  vi.  17. 

8.  The  hortatory  tone  of  verse  3  is  resumed.     The  Psalmist 


174  THE  PSALMS  34.  9-12 

Blessed  is  the  man  that  trusteth  in  him. 
9  O  fear  the  Lord,  ye  his  saints  : 
For  there  is  no  want  to  them  that  fear  him. 

10  The  young  lions  do  lack,  and  suffer  hunger : 

But  they  that  seek  the  Lord  shall  not  want  any  good  thing. 

11  Come,  ye  children,  hearken  unto  me : 
I  will  teach  you  the  fear  of  the  Lord. 

12  What  man  is  he  that  desireth  life. 

And  loveth  many  days,  that  he  may  see  good  ? 

invites  others   to  share   his  own  happy  experience.     Taste  and 
sight  represent  spiritual  perception  in  its  more  intimate  forms. 

9.  ye  Ms  saints :  not,  as  often,  those  who  have  entered  into 
covenant  relation  with  God,  but  those  who  are  in  character  holy, 
a  phrase  very  unlikely  to  be  found  in  the  lips  of  David  addressing 
the  motley  company  whom  he  had  gathered  round  him  in  the  cave 
of  Adullam. 

10.  young'  lions:  a  proverbial  phrase  for  those  best  able  to 
provide  for  themselves  by  strength  and  courage.  The  words  of 
this  verse  were  the  last  transcribed  by  Columba,  the  mediaeval 
saint  and  missionary,  who  said  on  the  morning  of  his  death  that 
his  Lord  would  call  him  ere  midnight.  In  the  afternoon  he 
entered  with  one  of  his  companions  the  wattled  hut  of  the  monas- 
tery and  continued  his  transcription  of  the  Psalms.  When  he 
reached  this  verse,  he  said,  '''They  shall  not  want  any  good 
thing  " — that  is  a  good  place  for  me  to  stop.  The  next  verse 
belongs  to   my  successors.' 

11.  Render,  'Come,  my  sons,  hearken  to  me';  the  word 
children  is  ambiguous,  and  has  been  removed  in  R.  V.  from  the 
passage  in  Proverbs  which, forms  a  close  parallel  with  this.  Not 
children  in  years  are  intended,  but  those  who  are  prepared  to 
listen  to  the  speaker  as  a  teacher,  see  Prov.  v.  7,  &c.  The  fear  of 
Jehovah  is  often  dwelt  upon  in  the  Book  of  Proverbs,  where  it 
is  represented  as  the  beginning  of  wisdom,  the  chief  part  of 
knowledge  (i.  7  and  ix.  10),  the  very  foundation  of  sterling- 
character. 

12.  The  phrases  of  this  verse  are  also  characteristic  of 
'  Proverbs,*  e.  g.  life  for  that  which  is  life  indeed,  Prov.  viii.  35, 
and  for  long  life,  see  Prov.  iii.  2,  x.  27.  The  exhortation  of  these 
verses  is  quoted  at  length  in  i  Pet.  iii.  10-12. 

13.  Another  feature  of  similarity  in  the  Psalmist's  teaching 
with  that  of  '  the  wise '  is  the  warning  against  sins  of  the  tongue, 
Pro\\  xviii.  21,  xxi.  23.     Such  counsel  is  needed  at  all  times,  but 


THE   PSALMS  34.  13-18.  175 

Keep  thy  tongue  from  evil,  13 

And  thy  lips  from  speaking  guile. 

Depart  from  evil,  and  do  good ;  14 

Seek  peace,  and  pursue  it. 

The  eyes  of  the  Lord  are  toward  the  righteous,  15 

And  his  ears  are  open  unto  their  cry. 

The  face  of  the  Lord  is  against  them  that  do  evil,  i6 

To  cut  off  the  remembrance  of  them  from  the  earth. 

The  righteous  cried,  and  the  Lord  heard,  17 

And  delivered  them  out  of  all  their  troubles. 

The  Lord  is  nigh  unto  them  that  are  of  a  broken  heart,    18 


it  would  be  strangely  placed  as  an  address  of  the  persecuted 
David  to  his  warrior  companions.  It  belongs  to  another  state  of 
society  and  another  type  of  teacher,  such  as  the  son  of  Sirach, 
and  James  in  his  Epistle. 

14.  Righteousness  is  enjoined,  negatively  in  the  avoidance  of 
evil,  positively  in  the  practice  of  good ;  whilst  peace  is  to  be 
cultivated  in  the  sense  of  a  kindly  disposition  towards  neighbours, 
as  contrasted  with  the  violence  and  fraud  of  which  the  Psalmists  so 
often  complain.  That  this  will  need  effort  and  must  be  pursued 
is  often  suggested  ;  compare  Paul's  *  as  much  as  in  you  lieth,' 
Rom.  xii.  18. 

15,  16.  Render, 

The  eyes  of  Jehovah  are  toward  the  riffhteons, 
And  his  ears  are  toward  their  cry ; 
whilst  His  '  face  is  against '  the  evil-doers.  In  the  passage  of 
the  Red  Sea  the  pillar  of  fire  and  cloud  propitiously  guided 
Israel,  but  discomfited  the  Egyptians  as  the  Lord  *  looked  forth ' 
against  them.  For  the  perishing  of  the  very  remembrance  of  the 
wicked  compare  ix.  6. 

1^.  As  the  text  stands  the  translation  should  be  'They  cried,' 
with  the  impersonal  use  of  '  they '  noted  in  verse  5.  The  LXX 
and  Vulg.,  however,  read  'The  righteous  cry,'  both  words 
beginning  with  Tsade^  the  characteristic  letter  of  this  verse.  A 
transposition  of  verses  15  and  16  has  been  proposed,  which 
however  does  not  seem  greatly  to  mend  matters. 

18.  The  afflicted  ones  of  this  verse  are  such  as  are  often 
mentioned  in  the  later  Psalms  and  in  Jeremiah,  men  who  have 
passed  through  sorrow  and  learned  its  lessons.  The  words 
employed  lie  on  the  borderland  between  condition  and  character; 


176  THE   PSALMS  34.  19-22 

And  saveth  such  as  be  of  a  contrite  spirit. 

19  Many  are  the  afflictions  of  the  righteous  : 
But  the  Lord  dehvereth  him  out  of  them  all. 

20  He  keepeth  all  his  bones  : 
Not  one  of  them  is  broken. 

21  Evil  shall  slay  the  wicked  : 

And  they  that  hate  the  righteous  shall  be  condemned. 

22  The  Lord  redeemeth  the  soul  of  his  servants  : 

And  none  of  them  that  trust  in  him  shall  be  condemned. 


the  broken  heart  and  contrite  spirit  are  crushed  by  sorrow, 
softened  in  penitence,  and  so  prepared  for  better  things.  Com- 
pare Isa.  Ivii.  15,  Ixvi.  2. 

19.  The  closing  verses  of  the  Psalm  present  a  series  of 
contrasts  between  the  fate  of  the  righteous  and  the  wicked, 
cast  in  the  antithetical  form  so  familiar  in  the  Book  of  Proverbs, 
illustrated  also  in  Psalm  i.  This  verse  recognizes  that  the 
children  of  the  kingdom  must  suffer  tribulation,  which  is  an 
advance  upon  more  primitive  ideas  that  good  fortune  always 
accompanies  goodness.  The  providence  of  God  is  shown  iii 
their  deliverance. 

20.  Preservation  in  calamity,  followed  by  deliverance,  is 
intended,  not  entire  immunity  from  trouble.  The  bones  may 
be  strained  and  racked,  but  the  life  will  be  preserved.  It  is 
possible,  though  not  probable,  that  this  passage  is  quoted  in 
John  xix.  36, '  A  bone  of  him  shall  not  be  broken,'  The  evangelist 
probably  refers  to  Exod.  xii,  46. 

21.  22.  The  word  for  slay  is  a  strong  one,  an  intensive 
conjugation  being  used.  The  versions  render,  '  The  death  of  the 
wicked  is  evil,'  or  'most  evil,'  following  perhaps  a  different 
reading;  Delitzsch  translates  shall  'throttle,'  'the  evil  which 
he  loved  and  cherished  shall  be  the  hangman's  power  to  which  he 
falls  a  prey.'  But  evil  means  rather  the  punishment  which 
overtakes  the  wicked  :  whether  it  strangle,  or  drown,  or  stab, 
it  is  certain  to  be  fatal,  and  terribly  so. 

The  word  translated  in  A.  V.  '  desolate,'  in  R.  V.  condemned, 
means  to  be  pronounced  guilty  and  treated  as  such.  The  A.  V. 
sounds  more  picturesque  and  impressive  in  English,  but  it  does 
not  convey  the  meaning  of  the  Hebrew,  The  R.  V.  is  seen  to  be 
more  impressive,  as  well  as  more  accurate,  when  it  is  borne  in 
mind  that  the  sentence  of  the  Judge  of  the  whole  earth  is  intended. 
An  anticipation  may  be  found  here  of  that  solemn  and  eternal 
parting  to  the  right  hand  and  the  left  of  which  Christ  speaks  in 


THE   PSALMS  35.   r  177 

A  Psalm  of  David.  gg 

Strive  thou,  O  Lord,  with  them  that  strive  with  me  :  i 

Fight  thou  against  them  that  fight  against  me. 

the  parable  of  the  sheep  and  the  goats.  Stern  sentence  is 
pronounced  upon  all  those  who  love  evil  and  hate  the  righteous, 
whilst  a  gracious  acquittal  and  acceptance  is  accorded  to  those 
who  take  refuge  in  Jehovah.  They  will  be  preserved  from 
condemnation  and  its  dire  consequences  now  and  evermore. 

Psalm  XXXV.     A  Plea  against  Persecutors. 

The  position  of  the  writer  of  this  Psalm  is  obvious  enough.  He 
is  surrounded  by  cruel  enemies,  from  whose  hands  he  had  deserved 
better  things.  He  is  in  danger  of  his  life,  and  is  firmly  convinced 
that  the  success  of  the  plots  against  him  will  be  injurious  to  the 
cause  of  righteousness.  It  is  not  quite  so  clear,  however,  who 
these  enemies  are.  Some  have  drawn  the  conclusion  from  verse 
15  that  foreigners  were  included  amongst  them,  but  this  is  very 
doubtful ;  see  the  note  on  that  verse. 

It  is  impossible  from  these  data  to  decide  the  question  of  date 
and  authorship.  Opinions  vary  chiefly  between  David  during 
Saul's  persecution  and  an  author  of  the  time  of  Jeremiah  ;  whilst 
modern  critics  who  refuse  to  place  any  Psalms  before  the  Exile 
assign  this  to  the  later  Persian  or  Greek  period.  In  favour  of  the 
Davidic  authorship  may  be  alleged  (i)  a  general  similarity  of 
circumstances  ;  (2)  a  coincidence  of  phraseology  between  verse  i 
and  I  Sam.  xxiv.  15,  '  Jehovah  be  my  judge  and  plead  my  cause,* 
&c.  ;  and  (3)  the  position  of  the  Psalm  in  the  First  Book.  But  on 
this  hypothesis  the  whole  of  David's  complaint  is  directed  against 
a  number  of  persons,  the  description  of  whom  in  the  Psalm  hardly 
corresponds  with  such  of  Saul's  counsellors  or  partisans  as  might 
be  supposed  to  be  intended,  while  there  is  no  allusion  to  the  one 
foe  whose  rage  and  envy  were  the  fount  and  origin  of  the  whole 
persecution.  On  the  other  hand,  the  number  of  coincidences 
between  the  language  of  this  Psalm  and  the  Book  of  Jeremiah  is  very 
large.  The  prophet  may  be  in  every  case  the  borrower,  but  it  is 
more  natural  to  suppose  that  the  parallels  are  due  to  a  similarity  in 
circumstancesbetweenthe  prophet  and  the  Psalmist.  The  conditions 
of  David's  persecution  by  Saul  were  in  reality  very  difierent.  There 
is  no  reason  to  draw  the  date  down  to  a  period  after  the  Exile. 

On  the  apparently  vindictive  tone  of  verses  4-6,  see  the  section 
on  Imprecatory  Psalms  in  vol.  ii,  also  the  notes  on  these  verses 
below.  The  attempt  to  give  them  a  Messianic  application  is  theo- 
logically unsound  as  well  as  exegetically  incorrect,  whilst  it  is 
incredible  that  David  should  use  such  language  in  relation  to  Saul. 
The  Psalm  falls  naturally  into  three  parts.     An  appeal  to  Jehovah 


178  THE  PSALMS  35.  2-4 

a  Take  hold  of  shield  and  buckler, 
And  stand  up  for  mine  help. 

3  Draw  out  also  the  spear,  and  stop  the  way  against  them 

that  pursue  me : 
Say  unto  my  soul,  I  am  thy  salvation. 

4  Let  them  be  ashamed  and  brought  to  dishonour  that 

seek  after  my  soul : 

to  do  justice  in  the  case  of  these  cruel  and  evil  men,  verses  i-io ; 
a  description  of  their  base  ingratitude  and  prayer  for  deliverance, 
H-18  ;  renewed  prayer,  especially  on  the  ground  of  the  harm 
which  their  victory  would  do  to  the  cause  of  right,  19-28.  This 
strophe,  like  each  of  the  preceding,  ends  with  a  protestation  on 
the  part  of  the  Psalmist  of  his  allegiance  to  Jehovah,  and  the 
thanksgivings  he  will  offer  if  his  prayer  be  heard. 

1.  Strive  in  this  verse  must  be  understood  of  a  contest  in  a 
court  of  law  ;  the  parallel  clause  uses  the  figure  of  an  actual  fight 
on  a  battlefield.  The  coincidence  in  phraseology  with  i  Sam. 
xxiv.   15  is  not  very  remarkable,  inasmuch  as  the  idea  of  God's 

*  pleading  the  cause  '  of  His  servants  is  not  uncommon,  see  i  Sam. 
XXV.  39  ;  Job  X.  2  ;  Isa.  xlix.  25.  It  is  still  more  usual  to  speak 
of  God  as  the  judge  in  such  a  cause,  but  the  details  of  the  figure 
here,  as  if  God  were  only  an  advocate,  are  of  course  not  to  be 
pressed. 

2,  3.  The  figure  of  the  warrior  is  continued.  Two  kinds  of 
shield  are  mentioned,  see  note  on  Ps.  v.  12  ;  also  the  spear  which 
the  Divine  Champion  is  to  drav/  out  from  its  place  in  the  stand  of 
arms  and  use  in  defence  of  the  suppliant.  The  spear  {chanith)  is  to 
be  distinguished  from  the  javelin,  which  was  thrown  (Job  xli.  29), 
and  from  the  lance,  a  lighter  weapon. 

In  the  second  clause  the  translation  of  A.  V.  and  R.  V.,  stop  the 
way,  is  to  be  preferred  to  thiat  of  R.  V.  marg.,  which  by  a  different 
pointing  of  the  Hebrew  introduces  a  mention  of  the  '  battle-axe,' 
Heb.  sagar,   understood  b3''  some  to  correspond   to  the  Persian 

*  sagaris  '  and  the  '  maul '  or  hammer  mentioned  in  Jer.  li.  20,  but 
by  Cheyne,  after  Horsley,  as  a  short  dagger  or  dirk.  But  as 
Baethgen  urges,  there  is  no  mention  elsewhere  of  a  Hebrew 
weapon  of  this  name,  and  though  the  ellipsis  of  the  word  *  way ' 
is  abrupt,  the  most  probable  interpretation  is  that  of  our  versions. 
Thus  in  verse  i  the  enemy  are  in  pursuit,  in  2  and  3  the  armed 
Defender  has  arisen  and  blocked  the  way  against  them,  while  in 
verse  4  they  are  routed  in  utter  confusion. 

4.  The  Psalmist  prays  that  this  overthrow  may  be  complete. 
He  uses  stern  and  relentless  language,  but  is  not  animated  by 


THE  PSALMS  35.  5-8  179 

Let  them  be  turned  back  aiid  confounded  that  devise 

my  hurt. 
Let  them  be  as  chaff  before  the  wind,  5 

And  the  angel  of  the  Lord  driving  them  on. 
Let  their  way  be  dark  and  slippery,  6 

And  the  angel  of  the  Lord  pursuing  them. 
For  without  cause  have  they  hid  for  me  their  net  in  a  pit,  7 
Without  cause  have  they  digged  a  pit  for  my  soul. 
Let  destruction  come  upon  him  at  unawares ;  8 

And  let  his  net  that  he  hath  hid  catch  himself : 

a  personally  vindictive  spirit,  as  is  clear  from  verses  12-14  and  i9« 
It  is  the  triumph  of  righteousness  v^'hich  he  desires  to  see  consum- 
mated, and  he  paints  the  picture  of  an  army  in  retreat  with  the 
utmost  force  and  vividness. 

5,  6.  The  defeat  here  described  is  such  as  Joshua  was  enabled 
to  win  over  the  Gibeonites  at  Beth-horon,  a  pass  noted  in  history 
for  battles,  and  lending  itself  naturally  to  the  headlong  rout  of 
a  beaten  foe.  The  figure  of  a  thunderstorm  such  as  aided  Joshua 
(Joshua  X.  11)  seems,  moreover,  to  be  present  before  the  imagina- 
tion of  the  Psalmist.  Compare  Jer.  xxiii.  12,  *  as  slippery  places 
in  the  darkness.' 

The  mention  of  the  angel  of  Jehovah  makes  these  maledictions 
to  be  much  more  terrible  than  the  mere  description  of  overthrow 
would  imply  ;  in  our  ears  it  sounds  like  cursing  pure  and  simple. 
Such  language  is  defensible  only  on  the  supposition — which  the 
Psalmist  takes  for  granted— that  his  is  the  cause  of  righteousness 
and  his  enemies  are  the  very  representatives  of  evil.  But  even  so, 
there  is  a  note  of  ruthlessness  in  such  imprecations  as  these  when 
uttered  against  fellow  men,  which  is  foreign  to  the  whole  spirit  of 
the  New  Testament. 

7,  8.  The  figures  change  in  the  description  of  the  attacks  made 
by  the  Psalmist's  enemies.  They  are  here  represented  as  laying 
snares  and  digging  pitfalls  that  they  may  entrap  him  and  take  his 
life.  The  use  in  these  verses  of  the  singular  number  him,  he, 
himself,  does  not  point  to  an  individual  foe,  the  words  must  be 
understood  collectively.  This  seems  clear  from  the  whole  tenor 
of  the  Psalm  ;  in  some  other  cases  the  Psalmist  undoubtedly  has 
in  view  an  individual,  *  the  head  and  front  *  of  his  assailants  ;  here 
there  is  no  such  particularization.  The  Psalmist  does  not  hesitate 
to  retaliate  in  spirit  and  to  invoke  upon  his  adversaries  retribution 
corresponding  to  their  offences  against  him — *  an  eye  for  an  eye, 
a  tooth  for  a  tooth.'     Let  them  suffer,  as  they  would  have  made  me 

N    2 


i8o  THE   PSALMS  35.  9-ia 

With  destruction  let  him  fall  therein. 
9  And  my  soul  shall  be  joyful  in  the  Lord  : 
It  shall  rejoice  in  his  salvation. 

10  All  my  bones  shall  say,  Lord,  who  is  like  unto  thee, 
Which  deliverest  the  poor  from  him  that  is  too  strong 

for  him. 
Yea,  the  poor  and  the  needy  from  him  that  spoileth  him  ? 

1 1  Unrighteous  witnesses  rise  up ; 

They  ask  me  of  things  that  I  know  not. 

12  They  reward  me  evil  for  good. 
To  the  bereaving  of  my  soul. 


suffer,  is  a  prayer  from  which  the  writers  of  the  Psalms  do  not 
shrink. 

9,  10.  The  closing  strophe  of  the  first  stanza.  It  affords  relief 
from  the  dark  pictures  which  have  filled  the  foregoing  verses,  as 
the  Psalmist  describes  the  pious  joy  with  which  he  will  celebrate 
his  own  deliverance.  His  soul,  his  inmost  nature,  and  his  bones, 
all  the  framework  of  his  body,  will  rejoice.  He  knows,  moreover,  • 
to  whom  his  safety  will  be  due,  and  his  thanksgiving  will  take 
a  form  adopted  by  other  rescued  saints,  from  the  time  of  the 
Exodus  onwards,  in  the  cry.  Who  is  like  unto  thee,  Jehovah? 
The  Hebrew  word  Micah  (  =  Micaiah)  means  'Who  is  like  Jehovah?' 
and  a  well-known  example  of  this  exclamation  is  found  in  Micah 
vii.  18. 

The  positive  side  of  the  deliverance,  the  salvation  of '  the  poor 
from  him  that  spoileth  him,'  is  pleasant  to  dwell  upon,  but  it  must 
not  be  forgotten  that  the  complete  overthrow  of  the  spoiler  was 
necessary  if  deliverance  was  to  be  effective. 

11.  The  second  portion  Of  the  Psalm  provides  abundant  reason 
for  the  Psalmist's  strong  indignation  and  resentment.  The  present 
tenses— *  Malicious  witnesses  rise  up,'  &c. — graphically  describe 
the  treacherous  dealing  which  has  taken  place  in  the  past  and  is 
still  being  carried  on.  Falsehood,  base  ingratitude,  and  inveterate 
malice  have  been  manifested  by  his  enemies.  Such  false  accusa- 
tions were  made  against  David  by  Saul,  against  Jeremiah  by  the 
princes  of  the  court,  and  against  many  a  righteous  sufferer  under 
the  Old  Covenant.  So,  too,  the  phrase  They  ask  me  of  thing's 
that  I  know  not  recalls  the  false  witness  against  Stephen  de- 
scribed in  Acts  vi.  13  and  against  Christ  in  Mark  xiv.  56. 

la.  The  present  tense  here  is  best  understood  literally.  *  They 
are  requiting  me  evil  for  good— bereavement  to  my  soul ! '   A  man 


THE   PSALMS  35.  13, 14  181 

But  as  for  me,  when  they  were  sick,  my  clothing  was  13 

sackcloth  : 
I  afflicted  my  soul  with  fasting  ; 
And  my  prayer  returned  into  mine  own  bosom. 
I  behaved  myself  as  though  it  had  been  my  friend  or  my  14 

brother : 
I   bowed   down   mourning,  as  one   that   bewaileth  his 

mother. 


falsely  accused,  and  without  defender  and  helper,  is  worse  than  an 
orphan  ;  his  very  soul  dwells  in  bitter  loneliness.  There  is  a  close 
coincidence  between  the  phrase  used  here  and  Saul's  confession 
in  I  Sam.  xxiv.  17  that  he  had  ungratefully  requited  David's 
magnanimity,  but  the  Psalmist  still  uses  the  plural  number  *  They,' 
which  we  can  hardly  understand  David's  doing  if  he  were  the 
author  of  the  Psalm  and  referred  to  Saul. 

13.  How  different  had  been  the  conduct  of  the  Psalmist!  He 
had  prayed  and  fasted  when  his  enemies  were  in  trouble,  desiring 
to  do  his  utmost  to  help  them. 

The  last  clause  of  this  verse,  my  prayer  returned  into  mine 
own  bosom,  is  obscure.  Several  different  explanations  have  been 
given,  (i)  Ewald  and  Delitzsch — so  also  apparently  A.  V.  and 
R.  V. — understand  that  in  the  attitude  of  grief  and  supplication  the 
head  was  bent  over  the  breast,  and  the  prayer  as  it  were  fell  back 
into  the  bosom.  (2)  Kirkpatrick  translates  '  M}!-  prayer  shall 
return,'  i.  e.  shall  not  be  unrewarded,  but  shall  bring  a  blessing  to 
the  offerer.  So  substantially  Cheyne  ;  who,  however,  would 
emend  the  text.  Perhaps  the  best  rendering  is  (3)  '  My  prayer — 
may  it  return  into  my  bosom ! '  So  Perowne,  who  comments,  'The 
prayer  I  offered  for  them  is  a  prayer  I  might  have  offered  for 
myself.  So  true  a  prayer  was  it,  so  full  of  love,  that  I  could  wish 
nothing  more  than  that  the  blessings  I  asked  for  them  should  be 
vouchsafed  to  me.'  This  fits  best  with  the  context,  which  goes  on 
to  compare  the  Psalmist's  sorrow  for  his  enemies  with  the  sympathy 
which  friend  feels  for  friend,  or  a  son  for  his  mother.  The 
rendering  may  appear  somewhat  far-fetched,  but  if  the  Hebrew 
text  be  sound,  some  periphrasis  is  necessary  to  explain  a  phrase 
which  is  obscure  through  its  brevity'. 

14.  The  outward  signs  of  mourning  are  always  conspicuous  in 
the  East.  Unwashed  face  and  garments  of  sackcloth,  neglected 
hair  and  beard,  drooping  head,  dejected  mien  and  gait,  are 
amongst  the  signs  mentioned  in  such  passages  as  Isa.  Iviii.  5  ; 
2  Sam.  xix.  24. 


i82  THE   PSALMS  35.  15-18 

15  But  when  I  halted  they  rejoiced,  and  gathered  themselves 

together : 
The  abjects  gathered  themselves  together  against  me, 

and  I  knew  //  not ; 
They  did  tear  me,  and  ceased  not : 

16  Like  the  profane  mockers  in  feasts, 
They  gnashed  upon  me  with  their  teeth. 

17  Lord,  how  long  wilt  thou  look  on? 
Rescue  my  soul  from  their  destructions, 
My  darling  from  the  lions. 

18  I  will  give  thee  thanks  in  the  great  congregation : 
I  will  praise  thee  among  much  people. 

15.  *At  my  halting,'  i.e.  when  my  foot  slipped  and  I  was 
ready  to  fall,  as  in  Ps.  xxxviii.  16,  17.  The  second  line  runs 
literally,  '  They  gathered,  smiting,  and  I  knew  it  not.'  The  trans- 
lation of  A.  V.  and  R.  V.,  abjects,  accepted  by  many  interpreters, 
depends  on  a  passive  meaning  of  the  word  nekim  =  smitten,  i.e. 
afflicted,  wretched  and  worthless.  An  emendation  of  the  text, 
accepted  by  Baethgen,  Cheyne,  and  others,  reads  'foreigners' 
instead  of  *  abjects.*  This  is  suggested  by  the  clause  *  I  knew  not,' 
but  is  not  borne  out  by  the  general  drift  of  the  Psalm.  The 
simplest  meaning  is  probably  nearest  the  mark.  Render,  '  They 
gather  together,  smiting  me  unawares  '  ;  in  their  insidious  attacks 
they  stabbed  him,  as  it  v/ere,  in  the  back  with  calumnies,  see 
verse  11. 

In  the  last  line  '  They  tear  me  *  describes  metaphorically  the 
wounds  inflicted  by  slanderous  tongues — in  our  own  idiom,  '  tear 
a  reputation  to  tatters.'  This  meaning  supports  the  interpretation 
just  given  of  the  preceding  clause. 

16.  Lit.  Mike  profane  cake-jesters,'  i.e.  buffoons  ready  to 
indulge  in  any  kind  of  ribald  folly  to  secure  a  good  meal.  'Vile 
sycophants  '  would  be  the  corresponding  modern  phrase.  Or  we 
may  render,  '  After  the  fashion  of  profane  parasites  they  gnash 
upon  me  with  their  teeth,'  either  grinning  in  malicious  scorn  or, 
like  gluttons,  greedy  to  devour. 

17.  My  darling"  (marg.  '  My  only  one '),  i.  e.  my  one  only  life, 
synonymous  with  '  soul '  in  the  preceding  clause.  The  description 
of  the  enemies  as  lions  seems  to  explain  the  gnashing  of  teeth  as 
an  eagerness  to  devour  or  destroy. 

18.  The  second  portion  of  the  Psalm  ends,  like  the  first 
(verse  9),  with  a  declaration  of  the  Psalmist's  readiness  to  praise 


THE   PSALMS  35.  19-22  183 

Let  not  them  that  are  mine  enemies  wrongfully  rejoice  19 

over  me : 
Neither  let  them  wink  with  the  eye  that  hate  me  without 

a  cause. 
For  they  speak  not  peace  :  20 

But  they  devise  deceitful  words  against  them  that  are 

quiet  in  the  land. 
Yea,  they  opened  their  mouth  wide  against  me ;  2  r 

They  said,  Aha,  aha,  our  eye  hath  seen  it. 
Thou  hast  seen  it,  O  Lord  ;  keep  not  silence  :  22 

O  Lord,  be  not  far  from  me. 

God  and  publish  His  glory  in  every  way  possible,  if  deliverance 
may  but  be  vouchsafed  him. 

19.  The  third  stanza  does  but  renew  the  complaint,  the  petition 
and  the  promised  thanksgiving  of  the  former  two.  Indignation, 
however,  is  subsiding,  and  confidence  in  God  is  increasing. 

To  wink  with,  the  eye,  lit.  to  'bite  the  eyes,'  i.e.  suddenly 
to  close  them  in  contempt  or  derision,  may  be  a  sign  of  mischief, 
see  Prov.  vi.  13,  or  of  exultation  over  the  success  of  wicked  plots. 
The  latter  is  the  meaning  here. 

They  that  hate  me  without  a  cause :  this  may  be  the  clause 
quoted  by  Christ  as  from  '  their  law '  in  John  xv.  25,  or  Ps.  Ixix.  4 
may  be  referred  to,  or  the  allusion  may  be  more  general  to  many 
passages  which  describe  the  causeless  hatred  of  the  wicked  for 
the  innocent. 

20.  The  fable  of  the  wolf  and  the  lamb  illustrated.  Those  who 
themselves  are  anything  but  peaceable  accuse  '  the  quiet  in  the 
land '  of  causing  disturbance,  and  plot  against  their  peace.  The 
word  '  quiet '  in  this  sense  occurs  only  here.  It  is  synonymous 
with  lowly — it  is  so  rendered  in  the  Syrian  version — and  denotes 
the  humble  righteous  in  contradistinction  to  the  arrogant  evil-doers. 

21.  The  gesture  of  opening  wide  the  mouth  may  indicate 
either  (i)  the  gaping  and  gloating  of  malice  over  misfortune; 
or  (2)  contempt,  as  when  lip  and  tongue  are  protruded  in  xxii.  7  ; 
Isa.  Ivii.  4.  The  former  seems  to  be  the  meaning  here  ;  they  cry 
'  We  have  seen  it,'  i.  e.  our  desire  is  gratified  by  the  spectacle  of 
the  sufferer's  wretchedness.     See  also  verse  25. 

22.  A  fine  turn  to  this  taunting  phrase  of  his  enemies  is  given 
by  the  Psalmist's  reverent  faith.  He  cries,  Thou  hast  seen  it, 
Jehovali:  prove  therefore  that  Thou  art  neither  blind  nor  dumb 
by  the  manifestation  of  Thy  presence  and  the  utterance  of  Thy 


i84  THE    PSALMS  35.  23-27 

23  Stir  up  thyself,  and  awake  to  my  judgement, 
Evefi  unto  my  cause,  my  God  and  my  Lord. 

2 ;.  Judge  me,  O  Lord  my  God,  according  to  thy  righteous- 
ness ; 
And  let  them  not  rejoice  over  me. 

25  Let  them    not  say    in  their  heart,   Aha,  so   would  we 

have  it : 
Let  them  not  say,  We  have  swallowed  him  up. 

26  Let  them  be  ashamed   and   confounded  together  that 

rejoice  at  mine  hurt : 
Let  them  be  clothed  with  shame  and  dishonour  that 
magnify  themselves  against  me. 

27  Let  them  shout  for  joy,  and  be  glad,  that  favour  my 

righteous  cause : 
Yea,  let  them  say  continually.  The  Lord  be  magnified, 
Which  hath  pleasure  in  the  prosperity  of  his  servant. 

voice.     '■  Thou  God  seest  me '  may  be  the  terrified  utterance  of  an 
awakened  conscience,  or  the  cahn  plea  of  an  assured  trust. 

23,  24.  '■  Awake,  yea,  arouse  thyself! '  Such  anthropomorphic 
expressions,  when  found  in  psalms  and  prophecies,  can  surely 
only  mislead  the  unwary.  The  Psalmist  does  not  imagine  that 
God  is  asleep,  but  he  longs  and  prays  for  a  proof  that  there  is 
indeed  a  God  who  judges  in  the  earth.  Only  a  clear  conscience 
could  prompt  the  petition  to  be  judged  according  to  the  Divine 
righteousness. 

25.  Lit.  '  Aha,  our  desire  ! '  (R.  V.  marg.)  i.  e.  what  we  longed 
for,  now  we  have.  The  shayieful  delight  which  the  wicked  feel 
in  the  ruin  of  the  righteous  springs  largely  from  an  uneasy 
conscience.  Such  overthrow  seems  to  show  that  God  has  not 
seen  and  will  not  judge. 

26,  27.  In  contrast  with  the  petition  of  verse  26.  which  is 
almost  a  repetition  of  verse  4,  the  Psalmist  asks  that  those  may 
be  gratified  who  '  delight  in  my  righteousness,'  which,  as  R.  V. 
marg.  shows,  is  the  literal  form  of  the  phrase  favour  my 
rig-hteous  cause.  This  prayer  is  the  more  likely  to  be  granted, 
because  the  Psalmist  is  bold  enough  to  say  that  Jehovah  delights 
in  his  prosperity.  If  God  is  magnified,  so  will  the  righteous  cause 
of  the  Psalmist  be,  and  therefore  he  prays  for  the  triumph  of  all 
who  desire  this  consummation. 


THE   PSALMS  35.  aS—SG.  i  185 

And  my  tongue  shall  talk  of  thy  righteousness,  28 

A?id  of  thy  praise  all  the  day  long. 

For  the  Chief  Musician.     A  Psalm  of  David  the  servant  36 

of  the  Lord. 

The  transgression  of  the  wicked  saith  within  my  heart,      1 

28.  He  himself,  of  course,  v^^ill  share  this  joy.  Hence  he  once 
more  announces  that  if  the  opportunity  be  granted  to  him  he 
will  gratefully  use  it  to  the  uttermost,  giving  thanks  for  deliver- 
ance vouchsafed. 

my  tongue  shall  talk,  8cc.  The  word  translated  'talk'  is 
in  i.  4  and  elsewhere  rendered  'meditate' — 'speak  musingly' 
(Cheyne).  The  line  which  divides  thought  from  speech  is  soon 
crossed  when  the  mind  is  delighted  with  its  theme.  The  brimming 
cup  readily  overflows.  In  verse  18  God's  praise  was  to  be  made 
known  over  a  wide  area,  to  many  people ;  here  it  is  to  be 
celebrated  unceasingly,  'all  the  day  long.'  Abundant  gratitude 
will  find  abundant  expression,  Ps.  cxlv.  7. 

Psalm  XXXVI.     The  Sinfulness  of  Sin  and  the 
Goodness  of  God. 

The  two  parts  into  which  this  Psalm  obviously  falls — verses  1-4 
and  5-12 — are  strongly  contrasted,  both  in  theme  and  style.  The 
former  describes  the  evil  of  evil,  the  latter  the  lovingkindness  of 
God.  The  former  part  is  rugged  and  obscure  ;  in  the  latter  the 
diction  is  clear,  melodious,  and  beautiful.  The  transition,  moreover, 
is  not  effected  gradually  and  naturally,  but  with  an  abruptness 
which  has  naturally  led  to  the  supposition  that  parts  of  originally 
separate  Psalms  are  here  united.  This  is  a  probable,  but  not 
a  necessary,  hypothesis.  As  Prof.  Kirkpatrick  says,  the  two  parts 
ma3''  be  '  related  like  the  two  members  of  an  antithetic  proverb, 
and  the  reader  left  to  interpret  the  connexion  for  himself.'  And 
it  may  be,  as  others  have  suggested,  that  the  Psalmist's  style  varies  ? 
with  the  varying  theme,  and  labours  in  the  attempt  to  set  forth 
the  tangled  obscurities  of  the  wicked  man's  thoughts,  while  it  soars 
easily  in  delighted  meditation  upon  the  Divine  love  and  goodness. 
Still,  the  two  halves  of  an  antithetic  proverb  are  not  distinguished 
in  style  and  phraseology  as  are  these  verses  ;  nor  can  it  be  taken 
as  inherently  probable  that  a  crabbed  style  would  be  adopted  in 
describing  evil  and  a  smoother  flow  of  words  in  praising  God. 
If  portions  of  Psalms  have  often  been  blended,  and  if  internal 
evidence  is  to  guide  us,  it  would  appear  that  one  example  of  such 
combination  is  before  us.  It  is  not  pretended,  however,  that 
such  reasoning  is  conclusive,  the  Psalm  may  well  now  be  studied 
as  a  whole.     The  two  parts  are  easily  connected  in  thought,  and 


i86  THE   PSALMS  36.  a 

There  is  no  fear  of  God  before  his  eyes. 
2  For  he  flattereth  himself  in  his  own  eyes, 
That  his  iniquity  shall  not  be  found  out  and  be  hated. 

no  one  can  deny  that  the  effect  of  the  description,  both  of  the 
wickedness  of  the  wicked  and  the  goodness  of  God,  is  heightened 
by  the  close  juxtaposition  of  such  sharply  contrasted  strains. 

The  title  describes  David  as  *  the  servant  of  Jehovah,'  and  some 
have  found  a  reference  to  the  phrase  '  his  servant  *  in  xxxv.  27. 
But  the  date  is  probably  much  later  than  the  time  of  David  ;  the 
state  of  society  described  would  suggest  rather  the  period  of  the 
later  Monarchy. 

1.  Two  translations  of  the  first  line  are  possible,  according  to 
whether  the  Massoretic  text  be  closely  adhered  to  or  not.  If  it 
is,  The  transgTession  of  the  wicked  saith  within  my  heart 
means  that  the  Psalmist  is  able  to  penetrate  into  the  motives  and 
hidden  springs  of  the  wicked  man's  actions,  and  trace  all  to  an 
utter  lack  of  religion  and  godly  fear.  This,  however,  is  strained 
and  unsatisfactory.  A  more  literal  translation,  together  with  the 
adoption  of  a  various  reading  found  in  several  versions  and  noted 
in  R.  V,  marg.,  would  give  us,  'The  transgression  of  the  wicked 
uttereth  its  oracle  within  his  heart.'  But  what  is  'sin's  oracle,' 
and  what  does  it  say  ?  The  second  line  may  be  viewed  either  as 
containing  the  substance  of  this  oracle,  or  as  a  comment  of  the 
Psalmist  upon  the  statement  of  the  first  line.  The  peculiarity  lies 
in  the  use  of  a  sacred  word  like  neum,  reserved  for  specially 
solemn  and  oracular  utterances  of  Jehovah,  to  describe  the  guilty 
whispers  of  sin  in  the  wicked  man's  heart.  The  irony  is  bold, 
but  not  unparalleled.  Olshausen's  suggested  emendation,  accepted 
by  Cheyne,  to  supply  as  in  xiv.  i  the  clause  'that  there  is  no  God,' 
as  the  declaration  of  this  dark  oracle,  may  be  accepted  as  giving 
the  meaning,  which,  however,  is  more  forcibly  expressed  by  the 
ellipsis  implied  in  the  text  as  we  have  it.     Sin  is  the  inspiring 

,  deity  which  directs  the  Inmost  thoughts  of  the  wicked  man  ; 
it  breathes  its  own  foul  secrets  into  his  inner  ear — a  kind  of  parody 
of  the  sacred  message  given  from  time  to  time  by  God  to  His 
servants,  the  '  Black  Mass '  of  an  apostate  priest.  Hence,  adds 
the  Psalmist,  no  wonder  that  all  reverence  for  God  and  Divine 
things  is  absent  from  such  a  shrine. 

2.  Another  obscure  verse.  What  is  the  subject  to  '  flattereth' — 
God,  transgression,  or  the  man  himself?  R.  V.  text  implies  the 
last,  the  two  other  alternatives  are  given  in  the  margin.  Perowne 
and  Cheyne  amongst  English  expositors  understand  'God  flatters,' 
or  deals  smoothly  with  the  wicked.  But  both  the  usage  of  the 
word  and  the  context  are  against  this.  If  '  my  heart '  be  retained 
in  verse  i,  as  in  A.V.  and  R.V.,  the  wicked  man  must  be  understood 


THE   PSALMS  36.  3-5  187 

The  words  of  his  mouth  are  iniquity  and  deceit :  • 

He  hath  left  off  to  be  wise  mid  to  do  good. 

He  deviseth  iniquity  upon  his  bed ; 

He  setteth  himself  in  a  way  that  is  not  good ; 

He  abhorreth  not  evil. 

Thy  lovingkindness,  O  Lord,  is  in  the  heavens ; 
Thy  faithfulness  reacheth  unto  the  skies. 

as  flattering  himself,  the  Psalmist  thus  carrying  on  his  analysis 
of  the  wicked  man's  ideas  and  motives.  But  if,  with  the  best 
interpreters,  'his  heart'  be  read  in  verse  i,  we  should  render, 
'  For  it  (transgression)  flattereth  him  in  his  eyes,  that  his  iniquity 
shall  not  be  found  out  and  be  hated.'  The  whole  passage  then 
furnishes  a  striking  statement  of  the  deceitfulness  of  sin.  It 
whispers  in  low  mysterious  tones  within  the  soul,  as  if  it  were 
a  revelation  from  another  world,  that  there  is  no  need  to  be  afraid 
of  a  God  who,  if  He  exists,  takes  little  notice  of  transgression  ; 
and  it  casts  a  glamour  over  the  eyes,  persuading  the  man  that  none 
shall  ever  discover  and  draw  attention  to  the  hateful  thing. 

3,  4.  If  these  are  the  thoughts  of  a  man's  heart,  it  is  eas}^  to 
guess  what  his  words  and  deeds  will  be.  They  are  now  described 
in  five  clauses,  (i)  His  words  are  false  and  evil ;  (2)  negatively, 
he  gives  up  all  wise  and  beneficent  action  such  as  used  to  be  his ; 
(3)  positively,  he  plans  evil  devices  in  hours  of  meditation  ;  (4)  he 
carries  out  these  plans  systematically,  so  that  evil  becomes  the 
habit  of  his  life  ;  and  (5)  worst  of  all — though  many  might  not 
think  it  so — the  end  is  that  the  evil  becomes  a  part  of  the  man 
himself,  and  excites  in  him  none  of  that  loathing  and  detestation 
which  the  pure  heart  and  tender  conscience  ever  entertain  for  it. 
With  this  description  may  be  compared  that  of  Ps.  i.  i  and  many 
passages  of  Proverbs,  e.  g.  ii.  12-15.  ^n  spite  of  some  obscurities, 
there  are  few  passages  in  the  O.  T.  which  so  searchingly  analyse 
and  so  impressively  portray  the  corruption  of  the  inner  nature, 
and  the  outward  life  of  the  man  who  casts  off  the  fear  of  God  as 
a  ruling  principle  of  life. 

5.  With  rapid  flight,  like  a  bird  released  from  some  foul  earthly 
cage  or  entangling  nets  and  nooses,  the  Psalmist  rises  skywards. 
There,  in  the  heavens  and  beyond  them,  in  the  skies  and  above 
them,  are  the  lovingkindness  and  the  faithfulness  of  God — twin 
qualities  which  assure  to  all  who  trust  in  Him  that  He  will  fulfil 
His  promises  and  that  these  are  full  of  grace  and  comfort.  The 
mention  of  the  skies  is  intended  here,  as  in  Ps.  ciii.  ii  ;  Isa.  Iv.  9, 
to  indicate  the  infinite,  immeasurable  character  of  Divine  truth 
and  love. 


i88  THE   PSALMS  36.  6-8 

6  Thy  righteousness  is  Hke  the  mountains  of  God ; 
Thy  judgements  are  a  great  deep  : 

O  Lord,  thou  preservest  man  and  beast. 

7  How  precious  is  thy  lovingkindness,  O  God ! 

And  the  children  of  men  take  refuge  under  the  shadow 
of  thy  wings. 

8  They  shall  be  abundantly  satisfied  with  the  fatness  of 

thy  house ; 
And  thou  shalt  make  them  drink  of  the  river  of  thy 
pleasures. 


6.  For  an  illustration  of  other  attributes  the  Psalmist  turns  to 
earth  and  the  subHmest  objects  of  nature  around — the  mountains 
and  the  ocean.  Big-hteonsness  is  that  absolutely  just  and  equit- 
able character  which  leads  to  judgements  or  righteous  acts. 
The  latter  are  not  to  be  considered  only  in  our  modern  sense  of 
the  word  'judgement,'  as  visitations  of  wrath,  though  these  are 
included.  The  mountains  of  God — compare  '  trees  of  God,' 
civ.  i6,  and  *  river  of  God,'  Ixv.  9 — are  the  very  symbol  of  lofty 
stability  and  majestic  security ;  the  great  deep  is  profound, 
mysterious,  all-encompassing.  In  both  features  of  the  landscape 
are  found  elements  which  take  us  beyond  ourselves,  which  we 
cannot  measure  and  fathom,  but  which  we  recognize  as  helping 
to  constitute  the  great,  beneficent  order  in  which  we  live.  The 
last  line  of  this  verse  might  seem  to  present  an  anti-climax.  But 
the  clause  thou  preservest  man  and  beast  serves  to  show  how 
the  very  greatness  and  glory  of  the  Divine  attributes  are  pledged 
to  what  might  seem  the  humble  task  of  securing  the  safety  and 
happiness  of  God's  creatures,  even  the  meanest  of  them.  This 
thought  forms  a  natural  transition  to  the  next  verse. 

7.  Two  or  three  slight  changes  in  R.  V.  form  a  decided  improve- 
ment on  A.  V.  in  this  verse.  'Excellent'  is  replaced  by  precious, 
for  the  Psalmist  wishes  to  show  the  value  of  the  treasure  thus 
placed  at  the  disposal  of  men.  And  is  better  than  'Therefore' ; 
the  second  clause  is  not  a  deduction  from  the  first,  but  an  expli- 
cative addition  to  it.  Take  refuge  is  better  than  *  put  their  trust' : 
and  it  would  have  been  well  if  the  force  of  the  phrase  the  children 
of  m.en,  frail  and  motinl  as  they  are,  could  have  been  brought  out, 
for  the  Hebrew  implies  this. 

8.  A  still  stronger  and  fuller  statement  of  the  joys  of  spiritual 
communion,  under  the  figure  of  God  as  Host  receiving  His  wor- 
shippers in  His  temple  and  regaling  them  with  the  S/ieianiim,  the 


THE   PSALMS  36.  9-11  189 

For  with  thee  is  the  fountain  of  life :  9 

In  thy  h'ght  shall  we  see  light. 

O  continue  thy  lovingkindness  unto  them  that  know  thee ;  10 

And  thy  righteousness  to  the  upright  in  heart. 

Let  not  the  foot  of  pride  come  against  me,  1 1 

And  let  not  the  hand  of  the  wicked  drive  me  away. 

peace-offerings  or  sacrificial  meal,  which  in  all  Semitic  religions 
symbolized  the  Divine  favour  and  bounty  (Lev.  vii.  15). 
Render  : — 
'  They  are  satisfied  from  the  rich  provision  of  thy  house  ; 
And  of  the  river  of  thy  delights  dost  thou  make  them  drink.' 

9.  A  still  more  lofty  spiritual  utterance,  one  of  the  most  sublime 
in  the  O.  T.  In  the  combined  simplicity  of  the  vv^ords  and  pro- 
fundity of  the  thought  we  are  reminded  of  St.  John,  as  indeed 
two  of  his  favourite  and  often  repeated  words,  life  and  light,  are 
the  key-words  of  this  verse.  Jeremiah  (ii.  13)  uses  a  similar 
phrase,  ^fountain  of  living  waters,'  and  contrasts  it  with  men's 
*  broken  cisterns,'  just  as  in  ch.  xvii  he  describes  not  only  the  fruit- 
fulness  of  the  tree  planted  by  the  waters,  as  is  done  in  Ps.  i,  but 
also  the  dryness  and  barrenness  of  the  man  who  is  as  the  heath 
in  the  desert. 

Light  furnishes  the  purest  and  brightest  of  all  metaphors  in  man's  , 
attempt  to  set  forth  the  blessedness  of  the  beatific  vision  ;  hence 
its  frequent  use  in  Dante's  Paradise.  But  as  St.  John  emphasizes 
the  fact  that  the  man  who  walks  in  light,  or  purity,  holds  fellow- 
ship with  God,  so  the  Psalmist  shows  that  by  fellowship  with 
God  men  are  to  realize  all  the  purity  and  joy  of  which  the  present 
life  is  capable.  The  pellucid  simplicity  of  these  great  words 
makes  all  comment  mean  and  futile. 

10.  In  the  closing  stanza  the  Psalmist  applies  to  his  own  con- 
dition the  great  truths  on  which  he  has  been  meditating,  and  prays 
that  God  will  manifest  His  attributes  of  loviugkindness  and 
righteousness  so  as  to  help  himself  and  others  who,  in  spite  of 
wickedness  in  high  places,  are  striving  to  be  faithful.  No  man 
could  write  the  preceding  verses  who  had  not  himself  experienced 
God's  goodness,  so  his  prayer  is  that  God  would  continue  His 
grace  suflficiently  to  enable  His  saints  to  triumph. 

11.  The  foot  of  pride  implies  that  the  wicked  were  in  power, 
and  likely  to  trample  with  the  heel  of  oppression.  Iiet  not  the 
hand  .  .  .  drive  me  away  implies  that  they  had  the  power  to 
banish  the  Psalmist  from  his  home,  perhaps  from  his  country. 
The  literal  meaning  of  the  word  is  '  make  to  wander,'  and  it  is 
used  of  Israel's  exile  in  a  Kings  xxi.  8.     But  the  oppression  here 


I90  THE  PSALMS  36.  12— 37.  i 

1 2  There  are  the  workers  of  iniquity  fallen  : 

They  are  thrust  down,  and  shall  not  be  able  to  rise. 

37  A  Psalm  of  David. 

I  Fret  not  thyself  because  of  evil-doers, 

referred  to  seems  to  be  that  of  private  persons  who  '  covet  houses 
and  take  them  avvray,'  Mic.  ii.  2  ;  who  'join  house  to  house,  till 
tliere  be  no  room/  Isa.  v.  8. 

12.  An  abrupt  transition,  intelligible  only  to  those  who  are  able 
to  take  a  sudden  leap  of  faith.  The  Psalmist  sees  his  prayer 
already  more  than  answered.  The  perfect  tenses  show  the  evil- 
doers as  already  fallen  and  thrust  down ;  whilst  the  graphic 
;  word  There  points  as  with  outstretched  finger  to  an  already 
visible  overthrow.  One  step  more  is  taken  in  the  last  clause, 
'and  they  cannot  rise.'  No  resurrection  is  possible  for  those 
whom  the  God  of  righteous  love  overthrows,  when  He  answers 
the  prayers  of  His  saints  and  thrusts  down  the  powers  of  darkness 
for  ever.  So  the  song  shall  be  sung  in  the  land  of  Judah,  con- 
cerning all  its  oppressors,  '  They  are  dead,  they  shall  not  live  ; 
they  are  shades,  they  shall  not  rise,'  Isa.  xxvi.  14. 

Psalm  XXX VH.     Waiting  for  Jehovah. 

A  didactic  Psalm,  akin  in  thought  and  style  to  portions  of  the 
Book  of  Proverbs,  and  showing  points  of  connexion  with  Pss.  i. 
and  Ixxiii.  It  is  alphabetic  in  structure,  each  stanza  consisting 
for  the  most  part  of  four  lines — occasionally  of  three  or  five — and 
each  beginning  with  a  letter  of  the  Hebrew  alphabet  in  regular 
succession.  The  subject  is  Providence,  a  vindication  of  the  ways 
of  God  to  man  in  respect  of  the  prosperity  of  the  wicked  and  the 
trials  of  the  righteous.  This  great,  wellnigh  perennial,  question 
receives  various  treatment  in  the  O.  T.,  and  a  progress  of  thought 
in  relation  to  it  can  without  much  difficulty  be  discerned.  For 
fuller  treatment  of  the  subject  see  vol.  ii.  Introduction.  Here  it 
may  be  said  that  at  one  stage  of  the  history,  what  may  be  accounted 
as  'orthodox'  Hebrew  doctrine  on  the  matter — that  sooner  or 
later  in  this  life  wickedness  will  be  adequately  punished  and  godli- 
ness rewarded — had  not  been  seriously  questioned.  The  Book  of 
Job,  however,  represents  a  notable  epoch  in  the  history  of  O.  T. 
theology  on  this  head,  presenting  as  it  does  a  powerful  and 
searching  indictment  of  the  prevailing  view,  and  giving  an  answer, 
or  answers,  of  its  own  to  the  ever-recurring  question,  Why  do 
the  righteous  suffer  ? 

The  writer  of  this  Psalm  had  evidently  been  tempted  to  doubt 
the  justice  and  goodness  of  God,  as  he  saw  the  comparative 
prosperity  of  men  who  made  no  pretension  to  religion,  or  even  to 


THE   PSALMS  37.  2,  3  191 

Neither  be  thou  envious  against  them  that  work  un- 
righteousness. 
For  they  shall  soon  be  cut  down  hke  the  grass,  2 

And  wither  as  the  green  herb. 
Trust  in  the  Lord,  and  do  good ;  3 

ordinary  morality.  But  the  mental  disturbance  had  not  been  very 
deep,  and  he  quiets  his  own  soul  and  those  of  his  readers  by  the 
counsel  to  wait  patiently  for  a  while  and  the  balance  will  ere  long 
be  redressed.  It  is  to  be  remembered  that,  in  the  absence  of  any 
clear  revelation  concerning  a  future  life,  no  relief  could  be  obtained 
by  an  appeal  to  a  great  Day  of  Assize  when  final  rewards  and 
punishments  shall  be  awarded  according  to  a  perfect  law  of 
righteousness.  But  the  Psalmist  believes  that  such  righteous 
adjadication  will  take  place  in  this  life,  and  sin  be  visited  either 
upon  the  wicked  himself,  or  his  posterity,  or  both.  He  enjoins 
therefore  a  pious  attitude  of  reverent  waiting  for  the  Lord's  time, 
and  resting  in  Him  as  One  whose  moral  government  cannot  fail, 
however  little  His  ways  are  at  present  understood. 

No  regular  progress  of  thought  is  discernible  in  this  acrostic 
poem,  though  commentators  have  found  a  fourfold  division,  each 
part  consisting  of  about  ten  verses  ;  the  first  containing  positive 
counsel  i-ii,  the  second  describing  the  doom  that  shall  overtake 
the  wicked  12-22,  the  third  dwelling  more  on  the  reward  to  be 
given  to  the  righteous  21-31,  the  fourth  pointing  out  the  final  nature 
of  retribution  when  it  does  come  32-40. 

The  nearest  approach  to  fixing  a  date  that  can  be  made  is  to 
assign  the  Psalm  to  the  later  period  of  the  Monarchy,  as  expressing 
the  wisdom  of  '  the  wise  men '  who  taught  and  wrote  about  the 
time  of  Hezekiah. 

1,  2.  The  excellent  translation  Pret  not  thyself  represents 
a  phrase  which  means  literally  '  make  not  thyself  hot '  (in  anger) 
'  against  evil-doers.'  The  temptation  is  either  to  blaze  forth  in 
indignation  or  sullenly  chafe  and  *  fret '  at  the  moral  inequalities 
of  life.  In  this  case  the  latter  is  apparently  intended.  The 
Psalmist  addresses  those  who  had  no  power  themselves  to  act, 
and  were  more  likely  to  '  be  envious ' — lit.  to  glow  with  dull 
red  heat — '  of  the  workers  of  unrighteousness '  in  their  ill-deserved 
success. 

The  first  verse  is  repeated  almost  exactly  in  Prov.  xxiv.  19, 
but  the  figure  in  the  sequel  is  different.  There  the  wise  man 
says,  '  The  lamp  of  the  wicked  shall  be  put  out ' ;  here  the  Psalmist 
says  he  shall  speedily  perish  like  the  grass.  The  whole  Psalm  is 
but  an  amplification  of  this  opening  quatrain. 

3,  4.  R.  V.   text  and  margin  show  that  in  this  stanza,  while 


192  THE   PSALMS  37.  4-6 

Dwell  in  the  land,  and  follow  after  faithfulness. 

4  Delight  thyself  also  in  the  Lord  ; 

And  he  shall  give  thee  the  desires  of  thine  heart. 

5  Commit  thy  way  unto  the  Lord  ; 

Trust  also  in  him,  and  he  shall  bring  it  to  pass. 

6  x^nd  he  shall  make  thy  righteousness  to  go  forth  as  the 

light, 

there  is  no  doubt  about  the  meaning  of  the  first  and  fourth  Hnes, 
the  second  and  third  may  be  rendered  either  as  imperatives  or  as 
futures,  either  as  precepts  or  descriptions  of  the  blessing  which 
obedience  will,  bring.  The  Revisers  are  undoubtedly  right  in 
rendering  both  clauses  in  verse  3  as  imperatives —Trust  and 
Dwell ;  but  there  is  much  to  be  said  for  understanding  both  the 
clauses  of  verse  4  as  promises  : — 

'  So  shall  thou  find  thy  delight  in  Jehovah  ; 
And  he  shall  give  thee  the  petitions  of  thine  heart.' 
The  positive  cure  for  the  disease  of  envy  and  impatience  is  inward 
trust  and  outward  obedience ;  so  far  verse  3  is  clear.  In  the 
latter  part  of  the  verse  it  is  true  that  '  dwelling  in  the  land '  is 
usually  (as  in  A,  V.)  regarded  as  a  promise  granted  to  the  faithfuL 
But  the  imperatives  in  both  clauses  can  hardly  be  understood  as 
futures,  and  the  command  must  be  understood  as  enjoining  steady 
persistence  in  duty  in  the  place  where  duty  lies,  like  the  prophet's 
assurance  that  those  who  believe  'shall  not  make  haste'  or  be 
lightly  disturbed. 

Then,  says  the  Psalmist,  thou  shalt  find  true  happiness  and 
satisfaction  (i)  in  the  presence  and  favour  of  Jehovah  Himself; 
(2)  in  the  lot  and  condition  which  He  will  grant  in  answer  to 
prayer  and  in  acknowledgement  of  loyal  service. 

5,  6.  Commit,  ///.  *  Roll  thy  way  upon  Jehovah '  (R.  V.  marg.) ; 
i.  e.  put  off  upon  Him  the,  burden  of  life,  the  anxiety  which  its 
problems  cause  and  the  load  of  care  concerning  its  issues.  For 
the  figure  of  '  casting  care  '  compare  i  Pet.  v.  7.  He  shall  brincf 
it  to  pass,  lit  ^  He  will  do  '—no  object  being  specified,  the 
meaning  being  'all  that  is  necessary.'  Or  more  simply — Do  thou 
trust,  and  He  will  act. 

The  object  may  be  supplied  from  verse  6,  the  making  manifest 
of  the  Psalmist's  righteousness  and  the  vindicating  of  the  cause  of 
truth  being  the  object  which  he  had  most  at  heart.  A  fine 
description  of  the  shining  forth  of  righteousness  after  temporary 
obscuration  is  put  into  the  mouth  of  Zophar,  Job  xi.  15-19, 
especially  in  verse  17,  'A  day  brighter  than  noon  shall  arise,  and 
the  very  darkness  be  as  the  dawn  of  day.' 


THE   PSALMS  37.  7-10  193 

And  thy  judgement  as  the  noonday. 

Rest  in  the  Lord,  and  wait  patiently  for  him  : 

Fret  not  thyself  because  of  him  who  prospereth  in  his  way, 

Because  of  the  man  who  bringeth  wicked  devices  to  pass. 

Cease  from  anger,  and  forsake  wrath  : 

Fret  not  thyself,  it  tendeth  only  to  evil-doing. 

For  evil-doers  shall  be  cut  off : 

But  those  that  wait  upon  the  Lord,  they  shall  inherit  the 

land. 
For  yet  a  little  while,  and  the  wicked  shall  not  be : 
Yea,  thou  shalt  diligently  consider  his  place,  and  he  shall 

not  be. 

*7.  The  stanza  of  Daleth  has  only  three  lines,  and  the  variety 
gives  relief.  Best  in  the  I.OBD,  ///.  '  Be  silent  to  Jehovah/ 
P.B.V.  ^  Hold  thee  still  in  the  Lord.'  The  silence  and  patience 
here  enjoined  clearly  imply  passiveness  only  so  far  as  the 
injurious  action  of  'fretting'  is  concerned.  Thus  to  *hush  the 
soul  as  a  weaned  child '  (Ps.  cxxxi)  is  no  easy  task.  It  is  not 
mere  resignation,  quiet  waiting — the  root  implies  being  '  on  the 
stretch ' — it  needs  an  effort  of  great  spiritual  strength.  The 
repetition  of  the  phrases  found  in  the  first  verse  is  not  mere 
tautology,  the  reiteration  gives  emphasis  such  as  the  subject 
needs.  A  large  part  of  the  po'wer  of  the  Psalm  lies  in  the  quiet 
but  persistent  pressing  home  of  one  idea. 

8,  9.  Here  the  false  and  foolish  character  of  the  anger  is  made 
plain.  The  A.  V.  misses  the  meaning  in  the  second  clause  of 
verse  8  ;  R.  V.,  by  supplying  '  it  tendeth,'  brings  out  the  Psalmist's 
meaning.  It  is  very  tersely  expressed,  but  may  be  paraphrased — 
'Allow  not  thyself  in  what  may  seem  to  be  hot  indignation  against 
unrighteousness,  it  leads  only  to  unrighteousness  itself  in  the  end.' 
Wesley  said  that  fretting  is  as  bad  as  swearing. 

9,  It  is  doubtful  whether  in  this  verse  and  the  four  others 
mentioned  in  R.  V.  marg.  we  should  render  inherit  the  land 
or  'the  earth.'  The  former  gives  more  exactly  the  thought  of 
the  Psalmist,  the  latter  gives  a  fuller  meaning  and  links  the 
Psalm  with  the  New  Testament.  Verse  3  shows  that  the  land 
of  Canaan  as  the  land  of  promise  is  meant  in  the  first  instance. 

10,  11.  A  stronger  statement  of  both  sides  of  the  contrast. 
The  'cutting  off'  of  the  wicked  is  expanded  into  the  statement 
that  they  shall  be  swept  away  till  no  trace  of  them  be  left,  while 
on  the  other  hand  a  fuller  promise  is  given  to  the  righteous. 


194  THE   PSALMS  37.  11-15 

1 1  But  the  meek  shall  inherit  the  land  ; 

And  shall  delight  themselves  in  the  abundance  of  peace. 

12  The  wicked  plotteth  against  the  just, 
And  gnasheth  upon  him  with  his  teeth. 

13  The  Lord  shall  laugh  at  him : 

For  he  seeth  that  his  day  is  coming. 

14  The  wicked  have  drawn  out  the  sword,  and  have  bent 

their  bow ; 
To  cast  down  the  poor  and  needy, 
To  slay  such  as  be  upright  in  the  way : 

15  Their  sword  shall  enter  into  their  own  heart, 
And  their  bows  shall  be  broken. 


'They  that  wait  on  Jehovah'  is  changed  into  the  meek,  those 
who  are  'quiet  in  the  land,'  xxxv.  20.  These  shall  not  only 
occupy  the  land  which  is  their  inheritance  by  right  of  obedience, 
but  peace  and  prosperity  shall  abound  to  them.  The  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  uses  the  former  part  of  verse  11  in  the  third  beatitude, 
Matt.  V.  5,  but  both  the  moral  quality  of  meekness  and  the 
inheritance  promised  are  spiritualized  and  deepened  in  the  N.  T. 
utterance. 

12,  13.  For  the  phrase  srsiashetli  npon  hlnx  with  his  teeth, 
see  xxxv.  16.  The  fury  of  determined  malice,  of  the  wild  beast 
only  waiting  for  the  moment  to  spring,  is  here  intended.  The 
superior  might  of  Jehovah,  who  scorns  this  display  of  impotent 
rage  and  sees  imminent  the  destruction  of  the  would-be  destroyer, 
is  very  striking.  For  the  phrase  his  day  compare  *  his  day  shall 
come  to  die,'T  Sam.xxvi.  io,:,and'the  day  of  Jerusalem,' Ps.cxxxvii. 
7,  i.  e.  the  day  of  its  calamity  and  overthrow. 

14, 15.  Similar  plotting  and  preparation  of  mischief  is  described, 
to  be  followed  by  similar  intervention  and  retribution.  The  poor 
and  needy  may  sometimes  have  been  in  danger  of  actual  violence 
from  sword  and  how,  but  the  drawing  of  the  sword  and  bending 
of  the  bow  are  phrases  constantly  used  in  the  Psalms  to  represent 
metaphorically  injury  of  all  kinds. 

nprigrht  in  the  way  is  not  quite  the  meaning  here.  The 
Hebrew  says,  'the  upright  of  way,'  a  phrase  accurately  rendered 
in  A.  V.  '  such  as  be  of  upright  conversation,'  i.  e.  conduct  a  mode 
of  life.  Verse  15  shows  in  what  form  the  judgement  prophesied 
in  verse  13  will  come  :  the  wild  beast  shall  be  himself  devoured, 
the  archer  shot  through  with  his  own  dart. 


THE   PSALMS  37.  16-20  195 

Better  is  a  little  that  the  righteous  hath  16 

Than  the  abundance  of  many  wicked. 

For  the  arms  of  the  wicked  shall  be  broken  :  17 

But  the  Lord  upholdeth  the  righteous. 

The  Lord  knoweth  the  days  of  the  perfect :  18 

And  their  inheritance  shall  be  for  ever. 

They  shall  not  be  ashamed  in  the  time  of  evil :  19 

And  in  the  days  of  famine  they  shall  be  satisfied. 

But  the  wicked  shall  perish,  20 

And  the  enemies  of  the  Lord  shall  be  as  the  excellency 

of  the  pastures : 
They  shall  consume ;  in  smoke  shall  they  consume  away. 

16,  1*7.  Another  of  the  many  close  parallels  with  Proverbs  is 
observable  here.  Compare  verse  16  with  Prov.  xv.  16  and  xvi.  8. 
It  is  not  easy  to  render  the  word  hdmon,  translated  in  R.  V. 
abundance.  It  means  properly  noise,  as  of  a  crowd,  or  a  rush  of 
waters,  and  '  suggests  the  idea  of  noisy,  ostentatious  opulence  * 
(Kirkpatrick) .  The  bluster  of  ostentation  is  feeble  indeed  when 
the  power  which  lay  behind  it  is  broken.  '  He  whose  arms  are 
broken  can  neither  harm  others  nor  help  himself  (Delitzsch). 
The  strength  of  the  righteous,  on  the  other  hand,  lies  in  the  might 
of  Jehovah  who  '  upholds '  him.  The  '  arms  of  his  hands  are 
made  strong  by  the  hands  of  the  Mighty  One  of  Jacob,'  Gen. 
xlix.  24. 

18,  19.  knowetli  the  days  recalls  the  phraseology  of  i.  6. 
The  knowledge  here  referred  to  includes  the  watchful  care  of 
Providential  love.  It  may  mean  the  days  individually,  and  correspond 
to  the  '■  numbering  of  the  hairs '  in  the  N.  T.,  i.  e.  Jehovah  watches 
the  minutest  detail  of  the  lives  of  His  servants  ;  or,  more  generally, 
He  cares  for  them  to  the  end  of  life.  The  inheritance  is  that 
'  of  the  land '  so  often  referred  to  in  this  Psalm,  and  it  is  retained 
for  ever,  because  handed  on  from  generation  to  generation  of 
posterity.  Not  bare  possession  is  promised,  but  abundant  supply, 
so  that  in  the  days  of  famine,  which  in  so  many  Eastern  countries 
are  far  from  being  either  rare  or  nominal,  the  righteous  shall  lack 
nothing. 

20.  The  stanza  of  Caph  contains  only  three  lines,  and  makes 
another  artistic  break  in  the  regular  succession  of  couplets. 

But,  more  correctly  'For' ;  '  on  the  contrary  'being  understood. 
The  Syriac,  Targum,  and  other  versions,  including  A.  V.,  render 
'as  the  fat  of  lambs,'  a  translation    suggested   perhaps   by  the 

O    2 


196  THE    PSALMS   37.  21-24 

21  The  wicked  borroweth,  and  payeth  not  again : 
But  the  riglUeous  dealeth  graciously,  and  giveth. 

22  For  such  as  be  blessed  of  him  shall  inherit  the  land ; 
And  they  that  be  cursed  of  him  shall  be  cut  off. 

23  A  man's  goings  are  established  of  the  Lord  ; 
And  he  delighteth  in  his  way. 

24  Though  he  fall,  he  shall  not  be  utterly  cast  down  : 
For  the  Lord  upholdeth  him  with  his  hand. 

mention  of  smoke,  as  of  sacrifice,  in  the  latter  part  of  the  verse. 
This  is  now,  however,  almost  universally  abandoned  in  favour  of 
*the  beauty  of  the  meadows,'  the  somewhat  unusual  meaning  of 
'meadow'  or  'pasture'  being  established  by  the  use  of  the  word 
in  Ps.  Ixv.  14  and  Isa.  xxx.  23.  The  fading  of  the  flower  and  the 
vanishing  of  the  smoke  are  figures  of  transience  common  to  Homer 
and  the  Psalter  and  early  poetry  in  general.  It  is  a  mistake  to 
join  these  two  figures  together,  as  if  the  smoke  referred  to  were 
that  of  dried  grass  burning,  any  more  than  that  of  lambs 
sacrificed. 

21,  22.  The  close  connexion  of  these  two  verses  shows  that  in 
the  former  it  is  the  poverty  of  the  wicked  and  the  increasing 
wealth  of  the  righteous  which  is  described.  The  wicked  toorrow- 
etli  and  payeth  not  agfain,  because  he  is  unable,  not  because  he 
is  a  rogue.  In  the  second  half  of  verse  21  render,  'The  righteous 
dealeth  generously ' ;  A.  V.  is  misleading  in  its  translation  'showeth 
mercy.'  The  kindly  use  which  the  good  man  makes  of  his  sub- 
stance is  here  a  secondary  thought,  the  primary  one  is  that  he  has 
abundance  to  give  away.  The  promise  concerning  inheriting  the 
land  is  repeated  here  :  some  commentators  make  of  it  a  kind  of 
refrain,  marking  off  separate  sections  of  the  Psalm. 

23,  24.  The  emphasis  Here  should  be  observed.  '  It  is  from 
Jehovah  that  a  man's  steps  are  established,'  i.  e.  his  feet  made 
strong  to  walk  firmly  and  steadily.  The  word  used  warrants  the 
gloss  of  A  v.,  'a  good  man,'  though  it  is  better  not  to  introduce  it 
into  a  translation.  In  the  second  line  render,  'And  in  his  way 
doth  He  take  delight.'  The  whole  of  the  context  favours  the 
meaning  that  God  is  pleased  with  the  good  man's  life,  rather  than 
that  the  good  man  delights  to  walk  according  to  God's  precepts. 
But  analogies  may  be  found  in  the  Psalms  and  Proverbs  for  both 
interpretations.  The  thought  throughout  this  quatrain  is  that 
the  life  of  a  good  man  viewed  as  a  journey  is  one  of  steadfast  pro- 
gress, even  in  spite  of  stumbles,  because  God  is  well  pleased  with 
him  and  supports  him  throughout. 


THE   PSALMS  37.  ^5-^8  197 

I  have  been  young,  and  now  am  old ; 

Yet  have  I  not  seen  the  righteous  forsaken, 

Nor  his  seed  begging  their  bread. 

All  the  day  long  he  dealeth  graciously,  and  lendeth  \ 

And  his  seed  is  blessed. 

Depart  from  evil,  and  do  good ; 

And  dwell  for  evermore. 

For  the  Lord  loveth  judgement, 

And  forsaketh  not  his  saints ; 

They  are  preserved  for  ever : 

25,  26.  This  utterance  of  personal  experience  must  be  inter- 
preted reasonably.  The  Psalmist  renders  his  testimony  to  the 
general  rule  that  neither  the  righteous  in  their  own  lives  nor 
their  families  are  found  in  utter  and  permanent  destitution.  That 
they  have  to  suffer  privations  is,  so  to  speak,  a  part  of  his  hypo- 
thesis, which  appears  in  every  mention  of  *  the  afHicted.'  The 
drift  of  the  verse  is  similar  to  the  appeal  of  the  son  of  Sirach,  'Look 
at  the  generations  of  old  and  see  :  who  did  ever  put  his  trust  in 
the  Lord  and  was  ashamed  ? '  Ecclus.  ii.  10. 

In  verse  26  the  emphasis  is  again  to  be  laid  on  the  fact  that  the 
righteous  man  possesses  enough  and  to  spare,  but  the  generosity 
of  his  character  is  perhaps  more  prominent  than  in  verse  ar.  The 
continuity  of  the  generations,  for  good  or  for  evil,  is  constantly 
noted  in  this  Psalm.  The  doctrine  of  heredity  in  this  sense  was 
a  part  of  the  Hebrew  •  orthodoxy '  mentioned  in  the  introduction 
above. 

27.  The  often  repeated  proverbial  precept,  Depart  from 
evil,  &c.,  is  followed  by  an  imperative,  And  dwell  for  evermore. 
But  the  'And,*  as  often  in  Hebrew,  is  equivalent  to  'And  so,' 
which  gives  to  the  command  the  effect  of  a  promise,  '  Thou  shalt 
dwell.'  It  is  better,  however,  as  in  verse  3,  to  translate  literally 
and  understand  that  the  righteous  man  is  bidden  to  do  his  duty 
as  a  citizen,  and  hold  his  ground  as  a  faithful  servant  and 
representative  of  Jehovah  in  the  land. 

In  verse  28  saints  means  those  who  are  bound  by  covenant-ties 
to  Jehovah  and  are  faithful  to  their  allegiance.  This  verse  should 
end  with  the  word  '  saints ' :  the  stanza  of  Ayiit  consists  of  the 
quatrain  made  up  of  the  latter  half  of  verses  28  and  29,  which  we 
now  proceed  to  consider. 

28,  29.  The  clause  They  are  preserved  for  ever  does  not, 
according  to  the  received  text,  begin  with  Ayin^  though  by  a  slight 
and  perhaps  permissible  elision  of  the  first  letter  it  may  be  made  to 


198  THE   PSALMS  37.  29-33 

But  the  seed  of  the  wicked  shall  be  cut  off. 

29  The  righteous  shall  inherit  the  land, 
And  dwell  therein  for  ever. 

30  The  mouth  of  the  righteous  talketh  of  wisdom, 
And  his  tongue  speaketh  judgement. 

31  The  law  of  his  God  is  in  his  heart ; 
None  of  his  steps  shall  slide. 

32  The  wicked  watcheth  the  righteous, 
And  seeketh  to  slay  him. 

33  The  Lord  will  not  leave  him  in  his  hand, 
Nor  condemn  him  when  he  is  judged. 

do  so.  But  then  neither  in  meaning  nor  connexion  does  the  line 
fit  into  its  place,  and  most  modern  commentators  incline  to  follow 
the  reading  of  the  LXX  and  render : — 

*  The  unrighteous  are  destroyed  for  ever  : 
And  the  seed  of  the  wicked  are  cut  off/ 

thus  preserving  the  parallelism  and  the  contrast  with  the  two 
statements  concerning  the  righteous  in  the  former  half  of  verses 
28  and  29.  Again,  in  our  verse  29  occurs  the  'refrain  '  concerning 
the  inheritance  of  the  righteous.  It  is  rather,  however,  a  reiterated 
aphorism  than  a  poetical  refrain. 

30,  31.  Stanza  of  Pe,  devoted  wholly  to  the  righteous,  and 
dealing  with  his  inner  life  rather  than  his  outward  condition. 
Words  are  mentioned  before  thoughts,  for  out  of  the  abundance 
of  the  heart  the  mouth  speaketh.  The  close  connexion  between 
thought  and  speech  is  hinted  at  in  the  two  words  used  in  verse  30, 
the  former  meaning  to  '  talk  musingly '  (xxxv.  28)  and  the  latter 
sometimes  meaning  to  think,  ^as  well  as  to  speak.  The  explanation 
of  D(.ut.  vi.  7,  '  Thou  shalt  talk  of  these  words  when  thou  sittest 
in  thine  house,  and  when  thou  walkest  by  the  way,'  &c.,  is  found 
in  the  previous  verse,  'They  shall  be  in  thine  heart.'  A  close 
parallel  is  found  here.  Both  words  and  steps,  i.  e.  the  details  of 
conduct,  are  rightly  ordered,  because  God's  law  is  loved. 

32,  33.  The  reference  in  both  these  verses  seems  to  be  to 
unjust  earthly  judgement.  The  form  of  oppression  is  not  that 
of  open  violence,  but  unfair  use  of  power  and  authority.  The 
wicked  man  seeks  for  opportunities  of  unjust  accusation,  that  he 
may  press  his  advantage  to  the  utmost,  even  to  the  taking  away 
of  life.  But  'one  higher  than  the  high  regardeth  ;  and  there  be 
higher  than  they' — as  the  Preacher  says  concerning  men  who 
'  take  away  judgement  and  justice  in  a  province,'  Eccles.  v.  8.    The 


THE   PSALMS  37.  34-38  199 

Wait  on  the  Lord,  and  keep  his  way,  34 

And  he  shall  exalt  thee  to  inherit  the  land : 

When  the  wicked  are  cut  off,  thou  shalt  see  it. 

I  have  seen  the  wicked  in  great  power,  35 

And  spreading  himself  like  a  green  tree  in  its  native  soil. 

But  one  passed  by,  and,  lo,  he  was  not :  36 

Yea,  I  sought  him,  but  he  could  not  be  found. 

Mark  the  perfect  man,  and  behold  the  upright :  37 

For  the  latter  end  of  that  man  is  peace. 

As  for  transgressors,  they  shall  be  destroyed  together ;       38 

The  latter  end  of  the  wicked  shall  be  cut  off. 

Judge  of  all  will  not  suffer  this  perversion  of  justice,  and  His 
acquittal  will  secure  release. 

34.  Another  stanza  of  three  lines.  The  repeated  exhortations 
of  this  Psalm  exhibit  the  didactic  style  characteristic  of  Proverbs, 
and  found  in  a  few  Psalms.  In  this  instance  his  way  means,  of 
course,  the  way  of  Jehovah,  not  as  in  verse  23.  The  prospect  of 
seeing  the  overthrow  of  the  wicked  is  not  a  matter  of  personal 
gratification,  but  it  is  held  out  as  additional  evidence  of  the  whole 
thesis  of  the  Psalm.  Justice  shall  be  done  on  earth,  and  the 
oppressed  saints  shall  witness  its  triumph. 

35,  36.  Another  personal  testimony  drawn  from  the  Psalmist's 
own  experience.  He  has  seen  happen  that  which  he  declares  to 
be  only  an  illustration  of  a  universal  law. 

in  great  power  is  a  somewhat  tame  translation  of  a  strong 
expression.  Render,  '  I  saw  the  wicked  striking  terror,'  the 
whole  scene  being  rendered  more  graphic  by  the  preterite  tense. 
And  one  (or,  I)  passed  T)y,  and,  lo,  he  was  not.  Compare  the  use 
of  the  aorist  in  Jas.  i.  11,  where  the  description  gains  in  vividness 
by  being  represented  as  a  concrete  fact  in  the  past.  The  com- 
parison to  a  green  tree  in  its  native  soil,  rooted  as  if  it  formed 
part  of  the  landscape,  points  to  the  security  of  the  tyrant,  the 
apparent  impossibility  of  shading  his  power.  Yet  he  vanished 
utterly.  I  he  LXX  and  other  versions  read,  'I  passed  by,'  prob- 
ably the  correct  reading. 

37,  38.  This  stanza  bids  us  contemplate  the  final  issues  of  the 
'  two  ways,'  which  have  been  described  at  length  in  the  Psalm. 

There  is  doubt  about  the  meaning  of  the  word  acharith  used  in 
the  latter  clauses  of  verses  37  and  38.  It  is  translated  in  A.  V. 
'  end.'  in  R.  V.  latter  end  :  wliile  the  margin  gives  '  reward,'  or 
'  future,'  or  '  posterity.'    Most  of  the  btst  expositors  adopt  the  last 


20O  THE  PSALMS  37.  39—38.  i 

39  But  the  salvation  of  the  righteous  is  of  the  Lord  : 
He  is  their  strong  hold  in  the  time  of  trouble. 

40  And  the  Lord  helpeth  them,  and  rescueth  them : 
He  rescueth  them  from  the  wicked,  and  saveth  them, 
Because  they  have  taken  refuge  in  him. 

38  A  Psalm  of  David,  to  bring  to  remembrance. 

I  O  Lord,  rebuke  me  not  in  thy  wrath : 

meaning  and  render  in  verse  37,  '  There  is  a  posterity  to  the  man 
of  peace.'  This  rendering  is  certainly  the  easier  in  verse  38,  but 
there  is  much  to  be  said  on  the  other  side.  The  word  is  very 
seldom  used  of  '  posterity,'  Ps.  cix.  13  being  perhaps  the  best  of 
some  four  instances  adduced  and  itself  by  no  means  certain.  The 
fundamental  idea  is  not  concrete  but  abstract,  that  of  a  'sequel,' 
'  that  which  cometh  after ' ;  the  notion  of  a  final  happy  close  to 
life,  granted  to  the  righteous,  withheld  from  the  wicked,  seems  to 
give  the  best  meaning.  Compare  Prov.  xxiii.  18,  where  there  is 
similar  ambiguity,  and  Ps.  Ixxiii.  17,  which  tells  in  favour  of  this 
rendering.  It  is  not  to  be  denied,  however,  that  the  mention  of 
a  '  latter  end  '  leads  naturally  to  the  thought  of  posterity,  that  this 
may  be  intended  here,  as  the  best  interpreters  think  it  is,  and  the 
idea  is  quite  in  harmony  with  the  teaching  of  the  Psalm.  Kirk- 
patrick  says,  '  To  the  Israelite,  with  his  strong  sense  of  the 
continuity  of  life  in  the  family,  childlessness  or  the  loss  of  posterity 
was  a  virtual  annihilation.'  But  the  P.  B.  V.  gives  the  meaning 
very  simply,  '  that  shall  bring  a  man  peace  at  the  last.' 

39,  40.  The  opening  word  in  this  stanza  does  not  actually  begin 
with  Tav,  the  last  letter  of  the  Hebrew  alphabet,  but  it  virtually 
does  so,  the  opening  conjunction,  represented  by  a  single  letter, 
being  disregarded.  The  close  of  the  Psalm  is  peaceful,  as  becomes 
its  general  character.  This  last  stanza  sets  forth  God  as  a  source 
of  safety,  as  a  stronghold  or  shelter  in  which  men  may  hide,  as 
a  helper  in  distress  and  a  deliverer  from  danger  and  oppression. 
Those  who  believe  in  this  may  surely  rest  in  Jehovah  and  wait 
patiently  for  Him  :  and  when  they  have  waited,  wait. 

Psalm  XXXVIII.  A  Sufferer's  Penitential  Plea. 
The  third  of  the  <  Penitential  Psalms.'  Delitzsch  holds  that  the 
first  four  of  these  are  by  David,  and  form  a  chronological  series 
describing  his  repentance  for  his  great  sin  in  the  matter  of 
Bath-sheba  and  Uriah,  to  be  read  in  this  order — Pss.  vi,  xxxviii,  li, 
xxxii.  On  the  other  hand,  the  parallels  with  passages  in  Jeremiah 
arc  too  close  to  be  accidental,  and  many  assign  the  Psalm  to  that 


THE   PSALMS  38.  i  201 

Neither  chasten  me  in  thy  hot  displeasure. 

prophet,  or  at  least  to  his  period.  Cheyne  says  '  the  speaker 
represents  suffering  Israel,  who,  though  following  after  good, 
cannot  be  sinless  before  God.' 

It  seems  clear  in  any  case  (i)  that  bodily  sickness  forms  one 
element  in  the  suffering.  It  is  true  that  the  strong  expressions  of 
verses  5-8  have  been  understood  metaphorically,  just  as  the 
prophets  from  time  to  time  describe  the  moral  corruption  of 
Israel  as  disease.  But  it  is  simpler  and  sounder  exegesis  to  take 
the  obvious  meaning.  If  this  be  done,  it  renders  the  Davidic 
origin  less  probable.  But  (2)  trouble  of  mind  and  of  circumstances 
is  also  included.  The  sufferer  is  deserted  by  his  friends,  verse  ii, 
and  hunted  by  his  enemies,  verse  12,  And  (3)  these  afflictions 
are  recognized  as  a  part  of  the  punishment  of  sin.  Conscience  is 
troubled.  A  distinction  must  constantly  be  made  between  Psalms 
in  which  the  plea  for  help  is  urged  because  the  Psalmist  is  faithful 
to  his  religious  allegiance  and  those  in  which  sin  is  freely  confessed, 
verse  18.  And  once  again  (4)  the  plaintive  element  predominates. 
This  is  not  to  be  described  as  a  gloomy  Psalm,  but  the  suppliant 
pleads  for  forgiveness,  he  does  not  enjoy  it.  Indeed,  it  is  only 
towards  the  close  that  hope  dawns,  more  through  a  consideration 
of  what  God  is  in  Himself  than  the  Psalmist's  personal  realization 
of  His  goodness. 

Under  all  these  circumstances  the  Davidic  origm  seems  im- 
probable. But  we  have  not  data  enough  to  enable  us  to  fix  the 
date  precisely,  while  the  period  of  Jeremiah  is  in  many  respects 
very  suitable.  The  words  may  be  read  as  David's  confession,  or 
Jeremiah's  prayer,  or  Israel's  plea  in  her  humiliation,  or  as  a  Psalm 
in  the  Anglican  service  for  Ash  Wednesday,  or  they  may  be 
appropriately  used  by  any  sufferer  who  would  confess  his  sins  and 
plead  for  mercy.  The  Psalmist,  whoever  he  was,  speaks  for 
humanity,  so  long  as  it  sins  and  suffers. 

The  Psalm  readily  divides  itself  into  three  parts  :  verses  1-8, 
a  description  of  personal  pain  within  ;  9-14,  the  aggravation 
caused  by  alienation  and  persecution  without ;  15-22,  prayers  for 
help  and  deliverance. 

For  the  title  ^  to  bring  to  remembrance/  see  Introd.  p.  17. 
The  view  generally  taken  of  this  expression,  as  in  R.  V.  marg., 
is  that  it  indicates  a  liturgical  use  of  the  Psalm,  'to  make  memorial ' 
(Heb.  azkara)  being  a  technical  term  for  a  particular  portion  of  the 
meal-offering,  or  the  offering  of  incense.  See  Lev.  ii.  2  and  xxiv. 
7.  •  The  title  in  the  LXX  reads  '  for  a  memorial  concerning  the 
sabbath-day.' 

1.  The  distinction  between  the  chastisement  of  anger  and  of 
love  is  brought  out  in  Ps.  vi,  i — see  note  there— and  in  Jer. 
X.  24.     David,  as  well  as  later  O.  T.  saints,  quite  understood  and 


202  THE   PSALMS  38.  2-6 

2  For  thine  arrows  stick  fast  in  me, 
And  thy  hand  presseth  me  sore. 

3  There  is  no  soundness  in  my  flesh  because  of  thine 

indignation ; 
Neither  is  there  any  health  in  my  bones   because  of 
my  sin. 

4  For  mine  iniquities  are  gone  over  mine  head : 
As  an  heavy  burden  they  are  too  heavy  for  me. 

5  My  wounds  stink  and  are  corrupt, 
Because  of  my  foolishness. 

6  I  am  pained  and  bowed  down  greatly; 

recognized  that  suffering  might  be  only  a  mark  of  fatherly  regard, 
and  he  submitted  to  it  as  such,  2  Sam.  xii,  xxiv.  17.  But  the 
explicit  distinction  belongs  rather  to  a  later  period. 

2.  Two  conjugations  of  the  same  verb  are  employed  for  stick 
fast  and  presseth  sore.  It  is  difficult  to  render  this  in  English, 
but  we  might  say,  '  Thine  arrows  have  sunk  down  into  me,  and 
down  upon  me  has  sunk  heavily  thine  hand.'  The  chief  point 
is  that  it  is  God's  arrows  and  God's  hand  that  have  caused 
the  woe. 

3,  4.  Not  only  so,  but  the  anger  is  deserved.  The  cause  is  sin, 
which  the  Psalmist  bitterly  feels  and  fully  confesses.  Flesh  and 
bones  represent  the  whole  framework  of  the  body  ;  its  afflictions 
bring  home  to  him  the  heinousness  of  sin,  which  but  for  this  kind 
of  chastisement  he  might  not  have  adequately  felt.  '  No  health ' 
means  lit,  '■  no  rest,'  he  tosses  like  a  fever-stricken  patient.  In 
the  fourth  verse  the  sense  of  sin  predominates,  its  copious  floods 
have  overwhelmed  him,  its^ terrible  burden  crushes  him. 

5-8.  In  each  of  these  four  verses  words  are  used  which  hardly 
bear  literal  translation,  but  which  vividly  represent  aspects  of 
physical  suffering,  (i)  The  wotinds  are  those  which  are  caused 
by  severe  stripes,  which  fester  and  give  forth  a  bad  odour.  (2)  I 
am  bent  and  bowed  down  gfreatly  describes  the  cramped  and 
cringing  attitude  of  one  who  can  hardly  move  for  pain.  (3")  The 
central  parts  of  the  body  are  filled  with  buiningr,  i.e.  the  fever 
of  inflammation.  (4)  Hence  he  is  faint  and  sore  bruised,  more  lU. 
'benumbed  and  sore  broken,'  the  chill  of  approaching  death  is 
upon  him. 

The  only  additional  elements  in  this  painful  description  are  that 
sin  is  recognized  as  foolishness,  verse  5  ;  that  the  Psalmist  wears 
the  outward  garb  and  aspect  of  a  mourner,  6 ;  and  that  his  pain 


THE   PSALMS  38.  7-13  203 

I  go  mourning  all  the  day  long. 

For  my  loins  are  filled  with  burning ;  7 

And  there  is  no  soundness  in  my  flesh. 

I  am  faint  and  sore  bruised  :  8 

I  have  roared  by  reason  of  the  disquietness  of  my  heart. 

Lord,  all  my  desire  is  before  thee ;  9 

And  my  groaning  is  not  hid  from  thee. 

My  heart  throbbeth,  my  strength  faileth  me :  10 

As  for  the  light  of  mine  eyes,  it  also  is  gone  from  me. 

My  lovers  and  my  friends  stand  aloof  from  my  plague  j     11 

And  my  kinsmen  stand  afar  off. 

They  also  that  seek  after  my  life  lay  snares /^^  me ;  13 

And  they  that  seek  my  hurt  speak  mischievous  things, 

And  imagine  deceits  all  the  day  long. 

But  I,  as  a  deaf  man,  hear  not ;  13 


is  not  merely  physical,  but  that  he  cries  aloud  because  of  '  the 
mourning,'  R.  V.  disquietness  of  my  heart,  8.  The  deepest 
trouble,  after  all,  is  within. 

9.  The  God  to  whom  the  Psalmist  cries  understands  the  reality 
and  depth  of  his  need.  Men  for  the  most  part  do  not.  The  chief 
comment  which  the  foregoing  descriptions  arouse  in  the  modern 
reader  is  that  they  are  '  exaggerated,'  '  oriental,'  '  unreal.'  ^  If  the 
pain  was  physical,  less  should  have  been  said  about  it ;  if  it  be 
a  description  of  grief  for  sin,  the  language  is  morbid  and  extreme. 
Such  is  the  inevitable  comment  of  the  world  ;  only  God  knows  and 
understands  the  penitent's  heart, 

10.  This  verse  represents  the  exhaustion  of  one  who  has  passed 
through  paroxysms  of  pain.  The  agony  is  not  so  keen,  but  it  has 
left  him  spent,  panting,  half-blind  and  wholly  helpless. 

11.  12.  In  addition,  like  Job,  he  is  deserted  by  his  friends, 
or  they  fail  to  understand  and  sympathize,  whilst  enemies  take 
advantage  of  his  distress.  R.  V.  by  using  in  verse  ii  the  word 
plague  suggests  the  idea  of  leprosy ;  friends  are  aware  of  his 
troubles,  but  shun  him  as  one  who  is  smitten  of  God,  Isa.  liii.  4. 
The  phraseology  suggests  that  they  are  not  only  aware  of  his  pain, 
but  add  to  it  by  remaining  spectators  of  his  sufferings,  while  they 
refuse  to  help.  The  saints  treat  him  thus,  while  the  sinners  plan 
to  drag  him  further  into  sin  and  misery. 

13,  14.  The  Psalmist's  silence  shows  that  his  attitude  is  dif- 


204  THE   PSALMS  38.  14-18 

And  I  am  as  a  dumb  man  that  openeth  not  his  mouth. 

14  Yea,  I  am  as  a  man  that  heareth  not, 
And  in  whose  mouth  are  no  reproofs. 

15  For  in  thee,  O  Lord,  do  I  hope: 
Thou  wilt  answer,  O  Lord  my  God. 

16  For  I  said.  Lest  they  rejoice  over  me  : 

When  my  foot  slippeth,  they  magnify  themselves  against 
me. 

17  For  I  am  ready  to  halt. 

And  my  sorrow  is  continually  before  me. 

18  For  I  will  declare  mine  iniquity ; 
I  will  be  sorry  for  my  sin. 

ferent  from  that  of  Job.  He  is  one  'in  whose  mouth  are  no 
arguments,'  because  he  cannot,  Hke  Job,  plead  his  own  unsullied 
integrity.  A.  V.  is  mistaken  in  rendering  the  tenses  as  past,  it  is 
at  the  present  moment  that  he  is  deaf  and  dumb  before  men.  The 
trouble  is  not  chiefly  of  their  causing,  and  it  is  not  removable  by 
their  remedies.  The  Psalmist  leaves  them  to  taunt  or  to  slander, 
it  is  to  God  he  wishes  to  speak,  God's  voice  he  wishes  to  hear. 

15.  The  attitude  of  expectation  is  towards  God,  who  alone 
possesses  both  knowledge  of  the  disease  and  power  to  heal  it. 
In  the  second  clause  '  Thou '  is  emphatic — '  It  is  thou  who  wilt 
answer,  O  Lord  my  God.'  Notice  the  three  Divine  names  com- 
bined in  this  verse.  Jehovah  is  used  in  verse  1,  Adonai  in  verse  9  ; 
both  these,  together  with  Elohini^  are  found  here  and  again  in 
verses  ai,  22. 

16.  Various  pleas  are  h^re  introduced.  Per  Z  said  introduces 
them,  as  having  formed  the  basis  of  the  previous  prayer.  One  is, 
Lest  they  rejoice,  i,  e.  those  who  are  enemies  alike  of  God  and 
His  servant.  For,  in  spite  of  God's  just  anger  against  him,  the 
Psalmist  claims  to  belong  to  the  side  of  righteousness  on  the  earth  ; 
he  is  its  representative,  though  unworthy,  and  fears  lest  he  should 
bring  discredit  on  its  cause. 

17.  The  next  plea  is  his  own  sore  need.  He  is  limping  and 
ready  to  fall,  see  Ps.  xxxv.  15.  This  may  be  understood  of 
extreme  physical  weakness,  or  a  sense  of  moral  feebleness  may 
be  combined  with  it.     This  seems  to  be  suggested  by  verse  16. 

18.  Another  plea,  the  most  potent  of  all.  The  contrite  heart 
forms  the  best  and  truest  sacrifice  ;  the  Psalmist  brings  as  his 
offering  secret  penitence  and  open  confession — all  the  reparation 
that  man  can  make.     The  word  translated  Z  will  be  sorry— LXX 


THE    PSALMS  38.  19—39.  r  205 

But  mine  enemies  are  lively,  aiid  are  strong :  19 

And  they  that  hate  me  wrongfully  are  multiplied. 
They  also  that  render  evil  for  good  20 

Are  adversaries  unto  me,  because  I  follow  the  thing  that 

is  good. 
Forsake  me  not,  O  Lord  :  21 

O  my  God,  be  not  far  from  me. 
Make  haste  to  help  me,  22 

0  Lord  my  salvation. 

For  the  Chief  Musician,  for  Jeduthun.    A  Psalm  of  David.         39 

1  said,  I  will  take  heed  to  my  ways,  i 

and  Jerome,  '■  I  will  be  anxious ' — anticipates  the  later  idea  of 
'  anxiety '  about  the  soul. 

19.  mine  enemies  are  lively,  and  are  stronsf:  the  emendation 
of  the  text  suggested,  '  They  that  without  cause  are  mine  enemies,' 
would  complete  the  parallelism,  but  is  uncalled  for, 

20.  The  attitude  of  the  Psalmist  towards  men  is  different  from 
his  relation  to  God.  Before  men  he  is  righteous,  relatively  if  not 
absolutely  so.  He  claims  to  be  a  follower  of  the  good,  to  have 
returned  good  for  evil  to  his  enemies,  and  he  fearlessly  identifies 
himself  with  the  cause  of  righteousness.  He  may,  and  does,  feel 
himself  compelled  to  be  humble  in  the  dust  before  God,  but  his 
neighbours  and  his  enemies  have  no  cause  to  complain  of  him. 

21.  22.  The  last  stanza  is  the  brightest,  though  as  yet  only  the 
dawn  of  returning  day  appears  to  earnest  and  believing  prayer. 
The  source  of  comfort  is  found  in  the  recognition  of  what  God  is 
and  will  prove  Himself  to  be.  He  is  Jehovah,  Adonai,  Elohim  ; 
the  Psalmist  can  say  he  is  my  God  and  my  salvation.  Whilst  he 
has  this  storehouse  to  draw  upon  he  cannot  despair,  though  he 
has  not  yet,  as  in  some  previous  instances,  heard  the  word  of 
pardon  and  deliverance. 

Psalm  XXXIX.     Man's  Frailty  and  True  Hope. 

The  pathetic  beauty  of  this  Psalm  has  been  generally  recognized; 
if  its  music  is  in  a  minor  key  it  is  subduing  rather  than  depressing, 
for  trust  and  hope  are  breathed  from  amidst  its  plaintive  chords. 
It  has  been  assigned  to  the  author  of  the  preceding  Psalm,  but, 
whilst  points  of  comparison  present  themselves,  the  differences 
are  still  more  marked.  It  represents  a  later  stage  of  thought  and 
feeling — either  in  personal  experience  or  national  history. 

It  is  clear  from  the  opening  words  tiiat  sorrow  and   mental 


2o6  THE    PSALMS  39.  i 

That  I  sin  not  with  my  tongue : 

perplexity  were  not  new  to  the  Psalmist.  He  has  passed  through 
many  stages  of  trial.  His  own  personal  sufFerings,  the  prosperity 
of  the  wicked,  the  seeming  purposelessness  of  human  life,  are 
themes  which  have  often  stirred  his  soul  to  the  depths.  Time 
and  again  he  has  been  moved  to  rebel  and  loudly  to  complain, 
if  not  to  blaspheme.  Thus  far,  however,  he  has  kept  silence,  till 
in  the  Psalm  his  unrest  finds  utterance.  Not,  however,  in  the 
tumultuous  words  in  which  long  repressed  feeHng  generally  issues ; 
the  tone  is  calm  though  earnest  in  its  pleading ;  the  Psalmist  has 
already  learned  some  of  the  lessons  of  sorrow.  Utterance  has 
brought  some  relief,  Mike  dull  narcotics,  numbing  pain.'  But  the 
Psalm  closes  in  a  kind  of  twilight ;  before  the  morning  of  joy  has 
actually  dawned  the  Psalmist  sees  a  glimmer  of  hope,  and  he  ends 
with  a  touching  prayer  that  this  may  deepen  and  grow  into 
fruition. 

The  opening  stanza,  verses  1-3,  is  introductory,  describing  the 
occasion  of  the  Psalm  ;  in  4,  5  the  writer  prays,  pleading  his  own 
frailty  ;  in  6-1 1  he  enlarges  upon  the  transitoriness  of  human  life 
generally  and  his  personal  trouble ;  while  in  the  closing  stanza, 
12,  13,  he  renews  his  prayer  as  a  mortal  child  of  man,  staying 
his  weakness  upon  the  eternal  God. 

'  Jeduthun,*  whose  name  is  found  in  the  title — see  also  Pss.  Ixii 
and  Ixxvii — is  described  in  2  Chron.  xxxv.  16  as  a  contemporary' 
of  David  and  '  the  king's  seer.'  In  i  Chron.  xvi.  41  Asaph,  Heman, 
and  Jeduthun  are  named  as  three  leaders  of  temple-choirs  or 
musical  guilds.  Elsewhere,  as  in  i  Chron.  xv.  17,  the  name 
Ethan  is  mentioned  as  a  third  with  Heman  and  Asaph.  In  the 
present  instance  Jeduthun  would  appear  to  be  the  name  of  the 
'precentor,'  but  the  preposition  used  in  Pss.  Ixii  and  Ixxvii  is 
a  different  one,  'after  the  manner  of  Jeduthun,'  and  some  have 
questioned  whether  the  word  is  a  proper  name  at  all.  The 
personal  name  was,  however,  in  all  probability  traditional,  though 
the  subsequent  use  of  it  in  connexion  with  music  varied. 

1.  The  silence  here  described  is  not  the  same  as  that  described 
in  xxxviii.  13,  though  it  is  natural  to  compare  the  two  cases.  In 
the  former  a  conscious  sinner,  assailed  by  insults,  forbears  to 
reply;  here  a  saint,  sorely  exercised  by  the  problems  of  life, 
restrains  his  murmurings  and  complaints  in  the  presence  of  the 
ungodly,  lest  his  words  should  do  harm.  So  Job  in  his  earlier 
trials  '  sinned  not  with  his  lips,'  did  not '  charge  God  with  foolish- 
ness,' but  in  silence  'received  evil'  at  the  hands  of  the  Lord 
(Job  i.  22,  ii.  10).  The  third  line  reads  lit.  '  I  will  put  a  muzzle  on 
my  mouth  ' :  compare  Mic.  vii.  5,  '  Keep  the  doors  of  thy  mouth.' 
The  complaints  which  the  Psalmist  restrains  Jeremiah  did  not 
hesitate  to  utter,  complaining  that  God  had  deceived  him  (xv.  18 


THE   PSALMS  39.  2-4  207 

I  will  keep  my  mouth  with  a  bridle, 

While  the  wicked  is  before  me. 

I  was  dumb  with  silence,  I  held  my  peace,  even  from  2 

good; 
And  my  sorrow  was  stirred. 

My  heart  was  hot  within  me ;  3 

While  I  was  musing  the  fire  kindled : 
Then  spake  I  with  my  tongue : 

Lord,  make  me  to  know  mine  end,  4 

And  the  measure  of  my  days,  what  it  is ; 
Let  me  know  how  frail  I  am. 


and  XX.  7),  words  which  well  might  sound  blasphemous  to  out- 
siders. Some  expositors  think  that  the  clause  While  the  wicked 
is  before  me  indicate  the  source  of  the  Psalmist's  temptation — 
while  they  flaunt  themselves  in  their  prosperity  before  my  eyes  ; 
but  this  interpretation  seems  less  likely  than  the  one  given  above. 

2,  3.  even  firom  erood:  R.  V.  marg.  'and  had  no  comfort.' 
Either  of  these  translations  makes  good  sense.  The  former  is  sup- 
ported by  Gen.  xxxi.  24,  'Speak  not,  either  good  or  bad';  the  latter 
is  in  accordance  with  the  idiomatic  use  of  the  preposition,  'far  from 
good,'  and  is  more  in  harmony  with  the  context — '  I  kept  silence 
joylessly '  (Maclaren),  or,  without  allowing  myself  the  relief  of 
expression.  Three  stages  are  mentioned  which  led  up  to  utterance. 
(i)  My  sorrow  was  stirred,  unrest  such  as  friction  without  outlet 
causes;  (2)  My  heart  gfrew  hot  with  indignation  and  passion  ; 
(3)  the  fire  kindled — it  blazed  up  in  flame,  and  therefore  now  could 
not  be  repressed.  The  next  clause  is  more  expressive  without 
the  explanatory  'Then,'  which  is  not  found  in  the  Hebrew. 

4.  It  must  be  granted  that  this  resigned  and  touching  prayer  is 
not  what  might  have  been  expected  from  the  introductory  wrords. 
Here  is  no  Job-like  outburst  of  one  who  would  fill  his  mouth  with 
arguments  when  admitted  to  plead  his  cause  in  Jehovah's  presence. 
Either  the  words  of  hot  impatience  are  not  recorded,  or  the 
Psalmist  in  his  period  of  still  submission  had  learned  his  lesson 
and  hushed  and  quieted  his  soul  (cxxxi.  2)  before  he  began  to 
speak. 

He  asks  that  he  may  be  taught  his  own  frailty  and  transiency, 
as  the  best  way  of  facing  the  problems  of  life.  The  clue  to  the 
labyrinth  is  here ;  things  are  not  what  they  seem ;  and  the  creature 
of  a  day,  who  belongs  to  a  crowd  of  fleeting  shadows,  will  not 
venture  to  argue  with  the  Almighty. 


2o8  THE   PSALMS  39.  5-7 

5  Behold,  thou  hast  made  my  days  as  handbreadths ; 
And  mine  age  is  as  nothing  before  thee : 

Surely  every  man  at  his  best  estate  is  altogether  vanity. 

[Selah 

6  Surely  every  man  walketh  in  a  vain  shew : 
Surely  they  are  disquieted  in  vain : 

He  heapeth  up  riches^  and  knoweth  not  who  shall  gather 
them. 

7  And  now,  Lord,  what  wait  I  for  ? 

5.  as  handbreadths,  each  one  less  than  half  a  span,  a  seventh 
part  of  a  cubit — a  few  such  brief  spaces  make  up  the  whole  of  life. 
Render,  'And  my  life-time  is  as  nothing  before  thee'  ;  the  word 
ag-e  does  not  convey  the  idea,  which  might  be  cumbrously  para- 
phrased, '  the  duration  of  my  transitory  existence.' 

Three  times  in  as  many  lines  is  repeated  the  conjunction  trans- 
lated in  A.  V.  and  R.  V.  Surely.  This  is  perhaps  the  best 
rendering,  if  it  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  word  alwa3's  contains 
the  idea  of  '  nothing  but ' — as  if  many  alternatives  had  been  con- 
sidered, and  the  reasoner  is  shut  up  to  one  only  at  the  last.  Hence 
here  and  in  Ps.  Ixii,  where  also  the  word  is  characteristically 
repeated,  many  interpreters  translate  *  Only.'  A  literal  rendering 
would  be — '  Only  altogether-a-breath  is  every  man  even  when 
standing  firm.' 

6.  Better,  '  Surely  as  a  shadow  doth  man  walk  to  and  fro  : 

Surely  for  vanity  are  they  disquieted.' 

Breath — shadow — phantom — dream — such  are  the  words  used  by 
the  poets  of  all  ages  to  set  forth  the  brief,  unsubstantial  life  of 
man — 'swift  as  a  shadow,  short  as  any  dream.'  The  Psalmist 
introduces  at  the  same  tinle  an  artistic  touch  and  a  moral  lesson 
when  he  contrasts  the  confused  and  boisterous  din  of  man's  strivings 
with  the  vanity,  the  nothingness  in  which  they  end.  And  yet 
another,  when  he  says  with  graphic  suggestiveness,  '  He  pileth 
up  hoards,  and  knoweth  not  who  shall  carry  them  off.'  These 
words  are  not  uttered  complainingly.  They  represent  a  view  of 
life  which  the  Psalmist  desires  to  reach,  one  which  will  furnish 
an  antidote  to  the  murmurings  he  was  disposed  to  utter  when  he 
saw  the  prosperity  of  evil-doers.  One  who  foresaw  the  end  of 
Christ's  parable  of  the  Rich  Fool  would  not  enxy  him  his  great 
barns  and  greater  stores  of  goods. 

7.  And  now  always  marks  a  turning-point  in  argument  or 
exhortation.  Here  the  words  open  up  that  secret  source  of 
consolation  which   has  enabled   the  Psalmist   to  dwell   pensively 


THE   PSALMS  39.  8-12  209 

My  hope  is  in  thee. 

Deliver  me  from  all  my  transgressions  : 

Make  me  not  the  reproach  of  the  foolish. 

I  was  dumb,  I  opened  not  my  mouth ; 

Because  thou  didst  it. 

Remove  thy  stroke  away  from  me : 

I  am  consumed  by  the  blow  of  thine  hand. 

When  thou  with  rebukes  dost  correct  man  for  iniquity, 

Thou  makest  his  beauty  to  consume  away  like  a  moth  • 

Surely  every  man  is  vanity.  [Selah 

Hear  my  prayer,  O  Lord,  and  give  ear  unto  my  cry ; 

Hold  not  thy  peace  at  my  tears : 

For  I  am  a  stranger  with  thee, 

A  sojourner,  as  all  my  fathers  were. 

but  not  sadly  upon  the  transiency  of  earthly  things.  What  wait 
I  for?  asks  a  natural  question,  for  a  man  who  took  such  a  view 
of  life  as  is  implied  in  verses  5  and  6  might  seem  to  have  no  aim 
or  object  in  life.  The  answer  to  the  question,  'What  do  I  look  for?' 
is  not  future  blessedness,  but  a  present  God. 

8,  9.  The  Psalmist  desires  a  manifestation  of  God  to  himself; 
while  he  acknowledges  that  his  suffering  has  not  been  undeserved, 
he  claims  that  as  a  true  servant  of  God  he  should  be  vindicated  in 
the  eyes  of  the  foolish,  i.  e.  the  careless  and  godless  evil-doers 
around. 

10,  11.  The  humility  of  these  pleas  shows  that  chastening  has 
done  its  work.  Affliction  is  recognized  as  coming  from  God  ; 
rebellion  is  out  of  place  and  useless  on  the  part  of  sinful  man  ;  the 
Psalmist  only  pleads,  God  be  merciful ! 

Render  the  second  line  of  verse  11  as  R.  V.  marg.,  'Thou 
consumest  like  a  moth  his  delights'  or  'his  desirable  things.' 
The  word  is  usually  found  in  the  plural,  and  is  here  used  col- 
lectively. The  silent  but  effectual  destruction  effected  by  a  moth 
upon  a  garment  (see  Isa.  1.  9)  forms  the  point  of  comparison. 
The  transient  element  in  life  for  the  moment  hides  the  permanent — 
*  Nought  but  a  breath  is  every  man  ! ' 

12.  A  final  plea.  One  who  is  thus  a  transient  guest  may  throw 
himself  upon  the  clemency  of  the  lord  of  the  country — a  claim 
universally  allowed  in  the  East.  Of  the  four  words  for  stranger 
in  Hebrew,  somewhat  inconsistently  translated  in  our  versions, 
two  describe  a  man  who  is  literally  a  '  foreigner'  and  has  no  rights 


2IO  THE    PSALMS  39.  13— 40.  i 

13  O  spare  me,  that  I  may  recover  strength, 
Before  I  go  hence,  and  be  no  more. 

40  For  the  Chief  Musician.     A  Psalm  of  David. 

I  I  waited  patiently  for  the  Lord  ; 

in  a  land  to  which  in  no  sense  he  belongs.  The  other  two  are 
used  here,  the  more  important  of  them,  ger^  being  the  name  of 
the  'stranger'  so  often  recognized  in  Jewish  legislation.  He  is 
a  man  dwelling  permanently  in  a  land  which  is  not  his  by  right 
of  birth,  but  who  as  a  resident  possesses  certain  rights  and 
performs  corresponding  services.  See  Lev.  xix.  23.  Another 
passage  teaches  Israelites  that  the  land  of  promise  which  they  call 
theirs  is  really  God's  :  'ye  are  strangers  and  sojourners  with  me,' 
Lev.  XXV.  23.  The  idea  is  applied  in  the  N.  T. ;  see  i  Pet.  ii.  11  ; 
Heb.  xi.  13. 

13.  The  first  line  runs  ///.,  '  O  look  away  from  me,  that  I  may 
brighten  up,'  The  usual  prayer  of  the  Psalmists  is  that  God 
would  look  towards  them  and  brighten  them  with  the  Hght  of  His 
countenance.  But  a  parallel  to  the  expression  of  this  verse  is 
found  in  Job  vii.  19,  '  How  long  wilt  thou  not  look  away  from 
me  ? '  The  Watcher  of  men  sees  so  much  that  is  amiss,  that  He 
cannot  look  at  the  life  of  foolish,  sinful  man  without  frowning. 
Such  a  frown  strikes  terror,  and  it  is  the  wrath  of  the  All- 
searching  One  that  the  Psalmist  fears.  He  prays  therefore  that 
the  keen  glance  of  those  piercing  eyes  may  be  averted,  and 
that  God's  mercy  may  cheer  him  for  a  moment  before  he  passes 
away  into  a  land  which  in  comparison  with  the  present  life  is  so 
shadowy  and  dark  that  its  inhabitants  may  even  be  represented 
as  *  being  no  more.' 

Psalm  XL.     Thankful  Self-Consecration. 

Something  may  be  learned  from  the  study  of  this  Psalm  by 
those  who  would  understand  the  methods  of  the  compilers  of  the 
Psalter.  The  latter  portion  of  it,  verses  13-17,  occurs  again  as 
a  separate  Psalm — Ixx,  in  the  second  Book — with  the  change  of 
the  name  Yahweh  into  Elohitn  and  some  other  modifications. 
It  is  clear,  therefore,  either  that  two  Psalms  originally  distinct  have 
been  combined,  or  that  a  portion  of  one  has  been  detached  for 
separate  use  ;  and  that  editors  were  in  the  habit  of  modifying  the 
text,  either  for  liturgical  or  other  reasons.  The  conjectures  of 
modern  critics  are  accordingly  justified  when  they  suggest  similar 
explanations  in  the  case  of  other  apparently  composite  Psalms. 

The  whole  history  of  this  case,  however,  is  not  clear.  The 
majority  of  critics  hold  that  two  originally  independent  Psalms 
have  been  combined  ;  some  are  quite  as  sure  that  the  Psalm  as 


THE   PSALMS  40.  2  211 

And  he  inclined  unto  me,  and  heard  my  cry. 

He  brought  me  up  also  out  of  an  horrible  pit,  out  of  the  2 

miry  clay ; 
And  he  set  my  feet  upon  a  rock,  and  established  my 

goings. 

it  stands  was  composed  as  one  whole.  It  is  true  that  two  portions 
are  discernible,  very  different  in  character,  but  the  second  of 
these  does  not  exactly  coincide  with  Ps.  Ixx,  nor  is  it  easy  to 
fashion  a  complete  and  well-rounded  Psalm  from  the  former  part 
of  the  present  one.  So  far  as  internal  evidence  goes,  verses  t-io 
are  vigorous  in  expression  and  joyful  in  tone,  while  verses  11-17 
are  plaintive  and  supplicatory,  and  in  style  somewhat  tame,  pre- 
senting little  more  than  an  echo  of  other  Psalms. 

It  is  not  easy  to  speak  with  confidence,  but  internal  evidence 
seems  to  point  to  verses  i-io  as  an  original  Psalm,  expressing  in 
striking  language  a  sense  of  God's  goodness  in  delivering  the 
writer  from  trouble  and  danger,  and  his  determination  to  yield 
himself  fully  to  the  service  of  his  Deliverer.  An  appendix  was 
added  later  (verses  12-17),  in  which  the  jubilant  confidence  of  the 
earlier  verses  passes  into  a  sadder  and  less  hopeful  strain,  and 
a  portion  of  this  was  used  as  a  short  litany  and  placed  in  a  later 
Elohistic  collection  as  Ps.  Ixx.  The  first  word  of  verse  14,  '  Be 
pleased,'  was  omitted,  perhaps  to  make  a  better  opening.  The 
alternative  to  this  hypothesis  is  to  suppose  that  Ps.  xl  from  the 
first  formed  one  whole,  but  the  transition  from  triumph  to 
depression  is  very  marked,  and  it  seems  hardly  possible  that 
the  same  writer  in  the  same  experiences  could  pen  verses  1-3 
and  verses  12,  13,  17. 

There  is  no  intrinsic  reason  for  ascribing  this  Psalm  to  David, 
and  several  may  be  urged  against  it ;  but  the  alleged  points  of 
historical  connexion  with  Jeremiah  or  the  return  from  exile  are 
hardly  more  convincing  than  the  arguments  of  those  who  would 
accept  the  title  literally.  The  spiritual  significance  of  the  words 
is  not  affected  by  the  uncertainty  as  to  author  and  occasion. 

1.  Render,  'For  Jehovah  I  waited,  waited';  only  thus  can 
the  emphasis  of  the  Hebrew  idiom  be  reproduced  in  English. 

2.  Two  figures  may  be  combined  here,  that  of  a  dungeon  in 
which  a  man  is  imprisoned,  and  a  swamp  in  which  he  is  likely  to 
be  swallowed  up.  Or  both  may  be  combined,  as  in  the  case  of 
Jeremiah,  who  was  let  down  into  the  dungeon  where  '  was  no 
water,  but  mire;  and  Jeremiah  sank  in  the  mire'  (xxxviii.  6). 
Read,  with  R.  V.  marg.,  'a  pit  of  destruction.'  The  metaphor 
probably  indicates  trouble  rather  than  sin  ;  which  might,  however, 
be  included  if  verse  la  formed  part  of  the  original  composition. 

P  2 


212  THE   PSALMS   10.  3-6 

3  And  he  hath  put  a  new  song  in  my  mouthy  even  praise 

unto  our  God : 
Many  shall  see  it,  and  fear, 
And  shall  trust  in  the  Lord. 

4  Blessed  is  the  man  that  maketh  the  Lord  his  trust, 
And  respecteth  not  the  proud,  nor  such  as  turn  aside  to 

lies. 

5  Many,  O  Lord  my  God,  are  the  wonderful  works  which 

thou  hast  done. 
And  thy  thoughts  which  are  to  us-ward : 
They  cannot  be  set  in  order  unto  thee ; 
If  I  would  declare  and  speak  of  them, 
They  are  more  than  can  be  numbered. 

6  Sacrifice  and  offering  thou  hast  no  delight  in ; 

3.  The  new  song-,  mentioned  also  in  xxxiii.  3,  xcvi.  i,  Isa.  xl.  12, 
as  well  as  in  the  Apocalypse,  describes  the  fresh  outburst  of  praise 
which  fresh  mercies  and  signal  interventions  demand.  For  the 
phrase  see  it,  and  fear,  compare  Isa.  Ix.  5.  Terror  is  of  course 
not  meant,  but  reverent  confidence  in  God. 

4.  The  Psalmist  passes  from  personal  deliverance  to  more 
general  considerations.  He  appears  to  have  lived  in  a  time  when 
there  was  danger  of  apostasy  from  Jehovah  worship  :  hence  his 
denunciation  of  the  '  arrogant '  and  '  those  who  fall  away  treacher- 
ously.' The  word  translated  '  respecteth  '  means  lit. '  turneth  away/ 
and  increases  the  probability  that  idolatry  was  rife  and  failure 
in  allegiance  to  the  true  God  only  too  common. 

5.  This  exclamation  is  probftbly  caused  by  the  recent  manifesta- 
tion of  God's  goodness  which  prompted  the  praise  of  verse  3,  but 
with  a  national  rather  than  a  personal  reference.  '■  Marvellous 
works  '  is  a  kind  of  standing  phrase  for  striking  deliverances  such 
as  God  wrought  out  for  Israel  at  special  junctures,  not  necessarily 
implying  what  we  call  'miracles.'  Compare  Exod.  xv.  11; 
Ps.  Ixxviii.  4,  &c. 

The  third  line  may  be  translated  either,  'There  is  none  that 
can  be  compared  unto  thee '  (R.  V.  marg.),  or  '  There  is  no  setting 
forth  of  them  unto  thee.'  But  the  latter  meaning  is  more  in 
harmony  with  the  context,  and  preserves  the  parallelism.  In  the 
former  case  the  clause  forms  a  somewhat  awkward  parenthesis. 

6.  Between  the  last  verse  and  this  stands  the  unuttered  ques- 
tion, '  What  shall  I  render  to  the  Lord  for  all  His  benefits  ? '    The 


THE   PSALMS  40.  7  213 

Mine  ears  hast  thou  opened  : 

Burnt  offering  and  sin  offering  hast  thou  not  r^uired. 

Then  said  I,  Lo,  I  am  come ; 

In  the  roll  of  the  book  it  is  written  of  me : 

answer  is  of  that  spiritual  kind  which  shows  how  fully  the  devout 
Jew  sometimes  understood  the  evangelical  spirit.  Four  kinds  of 
sacrifice  are  mentioned  here :  zebach,  sacrifice,  and  minchah, 
offering',  are  the  general  terms  for  the  bleeding  and  unbloody 
sacrifice  respectively  ;  while  the  'olah  or  "burnt  offering  represents 
the  entire  consecration  of  the  worshipper,  and  the  sin  offering" 
the  propitiation  necessary  before  an  offender  could  be  re-admitted 
to  the  Divine  presence  and  favour.  None  of  these  in  and  of 
themselves  are  well-pleasing  to  God ;  the  Psalmist,  like  the 
prophet  in  Isa.  i.  11  and  elsewhere,  understood  that  these  were 
but  symbolic  of  heart-service  such  as  God  delights  in. 

The  clause  interpolated  between  these  two  parallel  statements 
is  somewhat  obscure.  Literally  it  runs,  see  marg.,  'Ears  hast 
thou  digged,'  or  *  pierced  for  me.'  The  difficulty  lies  in  the 
metaphor,  for  the  meaning  seems  clear — Thou  hast  given  me 
ears  to  hear  thy  voice,  and  desirest  to  find  a  heart  ready  to  obey 
it.  Whether  the  'digging'  means  the  original  planting  of  the 
ear,  or  the  uncovering  of  it  and  making  the  passage  clearer — 
'  boring '  as  mentioned  in  Exod.  xxi.  6,  a  mark  of  perpetual 
servitude,  cannot  be  intended — the  conclusion  is  much  the  same. 
The  LXX  has  a  curious  reading,  'A  body  hast  thou  prepared  me.' 
This  may  have  arisen  from  a  confusion  of  words  on  the  part  of 
a  scribe,  or  it  may  represent  an  intentional  paraphrase  on  the 
part  of  the  translator.  The  quotation  in  Heb.  x.  6  in  the  main 
follows  the  LXX  version. 

*I.  The  readiness  of  the  Psalmist  to  obey  the  call  of  God  is  here 
expressed.  The  willing  servant  says,  *  Here  am  L'  Again  all  is 
clear  with  the  exception  of  a  parenthetical  clause  which  corre- 
sponds in  position  with  that  just  discussed,  and  which  should 
probably  be  translated,  '  In  the  roll  of  the  book  it  is  prescribed  to 
me.'  The  break  in  the  construction  found  in  the  second  line  of 
each  of  these  verses,  whilst  at  first  disconcerting,  when  examined, 
is  seen  to  heighten  the  effect.  The  Psalmist  expresses  his  eager- 
ness to  engage  in  a  service  he  has  learned  to  love ;  but  he  inter- 
polates a  reference  to  God's  command  in  this  verse,  as  in  verse  7 
he  interpolated  a  statement  of  God's  claim.  The  reference  to  the 
law  and  the  roll  of  the  book  appears  to  be  to  Deuteronomy,  in 
which  the  spiritual  claims  of  the  law  are  specially  enforced. 

The  quotation  in  Hebrews  and  the  application  of  these  words  to 
Christ,  follows  the  general  spirit  and  tenor  of  the  passage  exactly, 
though  questions  may  arise  as  to  the  phraseology  in  detail. 


214  THE    PSALMS  40.  8-12 

8  I  delight  to  do  thy  will,  O  my  God ; 
Yea,  thy  law  is  within  my  heart. 

9  I  have  published  righteousness  in  the  great  congregation ; 
Lo,  I  will  not  refrain  my  lips, 

0  Lord,  thou  knowest. 

10  I  have  not  hid  thy  righteousness  within  my  heart ; 

1  have  declared  thy  faithfulness  and  thy  salvation  : 

I  have  not  concealed  thy  lovingkindness  and  thy  truth 
from  the  great  congregation. 
Ti  Withhold  not  thou  thy  tender  mercies  from  me,  O  Lord: 
Let  thy  lovingkindness  and  thy  truth  continually  preserve 
me. 
13  For  innumerable  evils  have  compassed  me  about, 

9.  Render,  '  I  have  proclaimed  glad  tidings  of  righteousness — 
my  h'ps  I  did  not  restrain.'  Law  and  '  gospel '  are  not  opposed 
in  the  Psalmist's  mind  :  no  proclamation  can  be  more  welcome 
than  that  there  is  a  God  of  righteousness  in  the  earth.  The 
variation  of  tense  in  the  second  clause  does  not  imply  a  transition 
from  the  past  to  the  future  ;  all  five  clauses  in  verses  9  and  10 
describe  what  the  Psalmist  has  done  or  refrained  from  doing. 

10.  Various  attributes  of  God,  sometimes  falsely  placed  in  opposi- 
tion to  one  another,  are  here  mentioned  in  the  same  connexion 
and  the  same  breath.  Paithfalness  secures  salvation;  lovingr- 
kindness  is  supported  by  truth. 

11.  The  temptation  may  have  arisen  in  a  comparatively  corrupt 
society  not  to  testify  thus  openly :  the  Psalmist  has  not  j'ielded  to 
it,  and  therefore  with  confidence  he  appeals  to  God  that  as  he  has 
not  restrained  loyal  witness  and  utterance,  'Thou,  O  Jehovah, 
wilt  not  restrain  thy  tender  mercies  from  me.'  The  tense  implies 
'Thou  wilt  not,  wnlt  Thou?  I  am  persuaded  that  thy  lovingkind- 
ness and  truth  which  I  have  declared  to  others  will  be  vouchsafed 
to  guard  me.' 

12.  Whether  the  last  verse  be  translated  as  praj^er  or  as  con- 
fident assurance,  there  is  a  hint  in  it  that  the  Psalmist  needs  help. 
Of  this  the  later  author — if  such  there  were — avails  himself  to 
describe  a  condition  of  things  not  previously  suggested.  Those 
who  maintain  the  unit}^  of  the  Psalm  are  compelled  to  admit  that 
no  account  is  given  of  the  sudden  storm-clouds  which  are  here 
found  changing  the  whole  aspect  of  the  landscape.  Evils  are 
troubles,  but  they  are  due  to  iniquities ;   and  when  these  words 


THE   PSALMS  40.  13-1;  215 

Mine  iniquities  have  overtaken  me,  so  that  I  am  not  able 

to  look  up ; 
They  are  more  than  the  hairs  of  mine  head,  and  my  heart 

hath  failed  me. 
Be  pleased,  O  Lord,  to  deliver  me : 
Make  haste  to  help  me,  O  Lord. 
Let  them  be  ashamed  and  confounded  together 
That  seek  after  my  soul  to  destroy  it : 
Let  them  be  turned  backward  and  brought  to  dishonour 
That  delight  in  my  hurt. 
Let  them  be  desolate  by  reason  of  their  shame 
That  say  unto  me.  Aha,  Aha. 
Let  all   those  that  seek  thee  rejoice  and   be  glad   in 

thee  : 
Let  such  as  love  thy  salvation  say  continually. 
The  Lord  be  magnified. 
But  I  am  poor  and  needy ; 
Ve^  the  Lord  thinketh  upon  me  : 
Thou  art  my  help  and  my  deliverer ; 
Make  no  tarrying,  O  my  God. 

are  written,  both  are  felt  to  be  overwhelming.  The  man  who  had 
proclaimed  God's  deliverances  so  that  many  should  see  and  fear  is 
himself  not  able  to  look  up  ;  he  who  had  just  sung  a  new  song 
and  expressed  himself  as  ready  for  any  service  is  so  depressed 
that  he  says,  *  my  heart  hath  forsaken  me.' 

13-16.  Almost  all  these  prayers  are  found  word  for  word  in 
other  Psalms.  For  verse  13*  see  Ps.  xxxviii.  22,  verse  13^  see  Ps. 
xxii.  19.  Verse  14  is  made  up  of  phrases  found  either  in  verses  4 
or  26  of  Ps.  XXXV,  whilst  every  clause  in  verses  15  and  16  can  be 
gathered  from  some  part  of  the  same  Psalm.  This  plagiarism  marks 
a  second-rate  writer,  and  is  very  unlike  the  vigorous  originality  of 
the  earlier  portion. 

17.  The  close  of  the  Psalm  is  touching  in  its  contrast  with  the 
opening.  Some  disconsolate  one  speaks  for  himself,  conscious 
that  he  has  the  same  ground  of  hope  as  the  man  who  was  taken 
from  the  pit  of  destruction,  and  pleading  that  the  like  deliverance 
maj'  be  his. 


2i6  THE   PSALMS  41.  r 

41  For  the  Chief  Musician.     A  Psalm  of'David. 

I  Blessed  is  he  that  considereth  the  poor : 
The  Lord  will  deliver  him  in  the  day  of  evil. 

'But  I— afflicted  and  needy — the  Lord  thinketh  of  me  : 
My  help  and  deliverer  art  thou ;  O  my  God,  tarry  not.' 

Such  a  suppliant,  waiting  for  Jehovah  and  crying  unto  Him,  will 
not  be  long  before  he  too  finds  his  feet  set  upon  a  rock,  his  goings 
established,  and  his  mouth  filled  with  a  new  and  joyful  song. 

Psalm  XLI.     A  Sufferer's  Consolation. 

It  is  not  unnatural  to  think  of  this  Psalm  as  David's,  and  in 
reading  verse  9  to  think  of  the  treachery  of  Ahithophel,  see 
2  Sam.  xvi  and  xvii.  This  is  the  older  view,  accepted  by  Delitzsch 
and  others ;  Ewald  says,  '  manifestly  written  by  a  prince.'  But 
the  sickness  which  forms  a  somewhat  prominent  feature  in  the 
Psalm  is  not  alluded  to  in  the  history,  nor  does  the  way  in  which 
*  enemies '  come  to  visit  the  sufferer  correspond  with  David's 
circumstances  at  the  time  of  the  rebellion  of  Absalom,  Baethgen 
assigns  the  Psalm  to  the  post-Exilic  period,  and  Cheyne  interprets 
it  of  '  the  people  of  Israel  likened  to  a  man  who  is  dangerously 
sick.' 

As  we  read  the  Psalm,  it  is  written  by  a  man  hardly  recovering 
from  a  dangerous  illness,  the  personal  and  bodily  affliction  being 
the  main  element  in  his  trouble.  This  is  aggravated,  however, 
by  the  base  ingratitude  of  false  friends,  who  regard  the  illness  as 
a  judgement  from  God  and  cruelly  anticipate  a  fatal  issue.  There 
is  not  sufficient  evidence  to  warrant  us  in  assigning  the  authorship 
to  David,  and  any  parallel  which  may  be  found  in  the  condition 
of  the  nation  to  the  sufferer  in  the  Psalm  is  altogether  secondarj' 
and  derived.  It  may,  however,  be  read  of  David,  as  Kirkpatrick 
suggests,  if  he  is  viewed  as  'unnerved  by  sickness,  in  which  he 
recognized  a  just  punishment  for  his  sins,'  and  as  lying  prostrate 
and  helpless  before  Absalom's  rebellion  actually  broke  out. 

The  first  stanza,  verses  1-3,  contains  a  general  meditation,  which 
in  verses  4-9  the  Psalmist  applies  to  himself;  verses  T0-12  contain 
a  closing  pra3'er. 

1.  A  beatitude,  the  O.  T.  counterpart  to  'Blessed  are  the 
merciful.*  The  word  poor  hardly  conveys  the  idea  of  the  original, 
which  means  feeble,  slender,  limp,  as  of  a  limb  that  cannot  hold 
itself  up;  if  'weak'  be  accepted,  as  in  R.V.  marg.,  it  must  be 
understood  of  any  who  need  help  '  in  mind,  body,  or  estate,'  but 
with  perhaps  a  special  reference  to  bodily  sickness.  The  A.  V. 
'in  time  of  trouble'  gives  the  thought  of  the  Psalmist  better  in 
English  than  R.  V.  in  the  day  of  evil,  though  the  latter  is  the 


THE   PSALMS  41.  2-6  217 

The  Lord  will  preserve  him,  and  keep  him  alive,  and  he  2 

shall  be  blessed  upon  the  earth ; 
And  deliver  not  thou  him  unto  the  will  of  his  enemies. 
The  Lord  will  support  him  upon  the  couch  of  languishing:  3 
Thou  makest  all  his  bed  in  his  sickness. 
I  said,  O  Lord,  have  mercy  upon  me :  4 

Heal  my  soul ;  for  I  have  sinned  against  thee. 
Mine  enemies  speak  evil  against  me,  saymg,  5 

When  shall  he  die,  and  his  name  perish  ? 
And  if  he  come  to  see  ;;/^,  he  speaketh  vanity ;  6 

His  heart  gathereth  iniquity  to  itself; 
When  he  goeth  abroad,  he  telleth  it. 


more  literal  rendering.     *  Evil '  in  English  has  a  predominantly 
ethical  meaning. 

2.  Jehovah  will  preserve  him.  The  future  tense  adopted  in 
R.  V.  is  much  better  than  the  optative  (marg,).  The  Psalmist  is 
thinking  of  himself  and  his  own  attempts  to  help  the  needy,  and 
comforting  himself  with  the  thought  that  God  will  not  forget  him 
in  sickness,  but  preserve  him  from  death  and  grant  him  prosperity 
again.  The  last  clause  may  be  a  prayer,  as  the  Revisers  render  it, 
but  it  is  better  to  keep  the  future  throughout. 

3.  The  second  clause  runs  lit.,  'AH  his  lying  down  thou  changest 
in  his  sickness.'  The  meaning  is  well  given  by  Chejme's  para- 
phrase, 'As  oft  as  he  lies  low,  thou  recoverest  him  in  his  sickness.* 
The  idea  of  arranging  the  bed  for  the  sufferer's  comfort  cannot  be 
drawn  from  the  root  meaning  to  'turn,'  not  to  say  that  it  is  in 
itself  a  Western  and  modern  one. 

4.  Render,  'As  for  me,  I  have  said,  Be  gracious  unto  me.' 
The  words  that  follow  do  not  belong  simply  to  the  past,  they 
represent  the  sufferer's  present  attitude  before  God.  He  is  content 
to  accept  his  sickness  as  a  mark  of  God's  displeasure  against  his 
sins,  though  he  resents  the  malicious  interpretation  of  his  enemies. 
A  saint  may  say,  'I  am  the  chief  of  sinners,'  when  it  is  not  true 
for  his  enemies  to  say  it  of  him. 

5.  6.  Malice  and  falsehood  are  near  akin.  Those  who  were 
gloating  over  the  sufferer's  evil  case,  and  gleefully  anticipating 
his  death  and  the  disappearance  of  his  memory,  pay  visits  of 
pretended  sjnnpathy,  and  speak  'falsehood'  (R.  V.  marg.).  Very 
striking  is  the  picture  of  the  hypocrite  whilst  in  the  sick  man's 
presence  gathering  malice  in  his  heart  and  material  upon  which  it 


2i8  THE   PSALMS  41.  7-1 1 

7  All  that  hate  me  whisper  together  against  me ; 
Against  me  do  they  devise  my  hurt. 

8  An  evil  disease,  say  fhey,  cleaveth  fast  unto  him : 
And  now  that  he  lieth  he  shall  rise  up  no  more. 

9  Yea,  mine  own  familiar  friend,  in  whom  I  trusted,  which 

did  eat  of  my  bread, 
Hath  lifted  up  his  heel  against  me. 

10  But  thou,  O  Lord,  have  mercy  upon  me,  and  raise  me  up, 
That  I  may  requite  them. 

11  By  this  I  know  that  thou  delightest  in  me, 
Because  mine  enemy  doth  not  triumph  over  me. 


may  feed,  and  then,  when  he  joins  his  associates  outside,  relieving 
his  mean  and  spiteful  soul. 

1,  8.  This  sickness  is  a  matter  of  importance  to  ra^Lwy.  They 
are  accustomed  to  meet  like  an  opposition  faction  at  a  court, 
whispering  calumnies  and  hoping  the  worst.  The  first  clause  of 
verse  8  runs  ///.,  'A  thing  of  Belial  is  poured  out  upon  him.'  But 
the  translation  of  R.  V.  could  hardly  be  improved  upon,  for  the 
evil  is  physical,  and  the  notion  of  its  having  '  fastened  upon  '  the 
sufferer  like  welded  metal  (Job  xxviii.  2)  is  implied  by  the  Hebrew 
root  used. 

9.  This  treacherous  cruelty  finds  its  climax  in  one  person,  mine 
own  familiar  friend,  ///.  '  tlie  man  of  my  peace ' ;  one  who  was 
bound  to  me  by  outward  ties  of  hospitality  and  kindness,  as  well  as 
by  an  inward  bond  of  trustful  friendship,  has  taken  this  opportunit}' 
of  doing  me  all  the  mischief  in  his  power.  The  clause  Hath  lifted 
up  {lit.  '  made  great')  his^'heel  against  me  ma}'-  refer  to  violence, 
i.  e.  has  struck  me  with  all  his  force ;  or  to  fraud,  he  has  raised 
his  heel  covertly  to  trip  me  up  and  overthrow  me  ;  the  latter  is  the 
more  appropriate  to  the  context. 

The  'fulfilling'  of  this  scripture  spoken  of  in  John  xiii.  18  in 
relation  to  Christ  and  Judas  does  not  necessarily  imply  conscious 
prediction  on  the  part  of  the  Psalmist,  but  a  most  appropriate 
application  of  the  words  is  made  on  the  part  of  the  evangelist. 

10,  11.  A  pra3'^er  that  God  would  in  his  case  illustrate  those 
general  principles  of  which  the  Psalmist  spoke  in  verses  1-3.  The 
idea  of  personal  retaliation,  that  I  may  requite  them,  appears 
here  again  ;  and  though  it  may  be  said  that  these  malicious  traitors 
are  enemies  of  God  and  of  righteousness,  the  note  of  personal 
triumph  anticipated  cannot  be  altogether  shut  out,  but  with  the 


THE   PSALMS  41.  12,  13  219 

And  as  for  me,  thou  upholdest  me  in  mine  integrity,         12 
And  settest  me  before  thy  face  for  ever. 

Blessed  be  the  Lord,  the  God  of  Israel,  13 

From  everlasting  and  to  everlasting. 
Amen,  and  Amen. 

addition  named  in  verse  11  that  the  Psalmist  wished  for  his  own 
triumph  mainly  as  a  proof  that  God  was  well  pleased  with  him. 

12.  The  present  tenses  represent  the  assurance  of  faith.  The 
Psalmist  is  confident  that  his  enemies'  malicious  hopes  will  be 
disappointed,  because,  sinful  as  he  is,  he  is  a  man  of  integrity.  God 
will  raise  him  from  his  sickness,  vindicate  his  character,  prolong 
his  life,  and  grant  him  a  posterity  who  shall  perpetuate  his  name 
'  for  ever '  in  the  sight  and  in  the  favour  of  God. 

13.  This  verse  is  not  a  part  of  the  Psalm,  but  a  'subscription' 
appended  by  the  editor  to  mark  the  close  of  the  first  Book  of 
Psalms.  See  also  Pss.  Ixxii.  18,  Ixxxix.  52,  and  cvi.  48.  Such 
doxologies  were  usual  not  only  at  the  beginning  of  praj^er,  i  Kings 
viii.  15  and  i  Chron.  xxix,  10,  but  as  ejaculations  in  conversation 
and  upon  all  solemn  occasions,  i  Kings  i.  48.  The  use  at  the  end 
of  various  collections  of  Psalms  is  liturgical. 

The  present  doxology  is  simple  but  sublime  : — 

'  Blessed  be  Jehovah,  God  of  Israel : 
From  eternity  and  to  eternity.     Amen,  and  Amen.' 

The  word  Amen  is  used  adverbially,  and  means  'firmly'  or 
'truly'  ;  it  may  be  uttered  by  a  suppliant  at  the  end  of  his  own 
prayers,  but  more  usually  in  the  O.  T.  it  represents  the  response  of 
another,  as  when  Jeremiah  responds  to  the  words  of  God  (xi.  5% 
or  to  those  of  Hananiah  (xxviii.  6).  It  also  expresses,  as  in  i  Chron. 
xvi.  36,  the  response  of  the  people  in  public  prayer,  and  that  is  no 
doubt  the  meaning  here. 


220  THE   PSALMS 

BOOK    II. 

PSALMS  42—72. 

It  has  already  been  said,  see  Introd.  p.  6,  that  the  division  of 
the  Psalms  into  Books  does  not  precisely  correspond  with  the 
history  and  growth  of  the  various  collections.  The  first  Book 
does,  however,  in  all  probability  correspond  to  a  first  general 
collection.  As  we  have  seen,  all  the  Psalms  in  it  are  ascribed  'to 
David,'  with  a  very  few  exceptions  which  do  not  invalidate  the 
rule.  The  second  general  division,  however,  does  not  coincide 
with  the  second  Book.  It  appears  to  have  been  formed  by  the 
union  of  several  smaller  collections  or  groups,  occurring  partly  in 
the  second  and  partly  in  the  third  Book,  including  altogether 
Pss.  xlii  to  Ixxxix.  The  greater  portion  of  this  division  (Pss. 
xUi-lxxxiii)  is  'Elohistic,'  i.e.  the  name  Elohtm,  ^God,'  is  used 
throughout  it,  instead  of  Yahweh,  which  prevails  in  the  first  Book. 
The  exact  figures  are  :  in  Book  I  '■  Yahweh '  occurs  272  times, 
*EIohim'  15,  while  in  Book  II  ^Elohim'  is  found  164  times, 
*  Yahweh  *  only  30  times. 

The  Book  on  which  we  now  enter  consists  of  the  following 
elements  :  eight  Psalms  (xlii-xlix)  'of  the  sons  of  Korah,'  one 
(1)  'of  Asaph,'  a  group  of  eighteen  Psalms  (li  to  Ixx,  except  Ixvi, 
Ixvii)  *of  David,'  an  anonymous  Psalm  (Ixxxi),  and  one  'of 
Solomon '  (Ixxii). 

As  this  is  the  first  appearance  of  '  Korahite '  Psalms,  and  the 
greater  portion  of  such  Psalms  are  found  at  the  opening  of  the 
second  Book,  it  will  be  convenient  here  to  explain  the  meaning  of 
the  term.  Korah,  who  was  descended  from  Levi,  is  described  in 
Num.  xvi  as  instigating  a  rebellion  against  Moses  and  perishing  in 
the  attempt.  His  descendants  are  frequently  mentioned  as  taking 
part  in  the  service  of  the  temple.  In  2  Chron.  xx.  19  they  are 
spoken  of  as  singers,  though  in  i  Chron.  ix.  19  and  xxvi.  i  they 
appear  as  door-keepers.  Heman,  the  leader  of  one  of  the  three 
great  temple  choirs,  is  represented  as  a  Korahite,  see  i  Chron. 
vi.  33  and  xxv.  6.  It  would  appear  that  at  the  time  of  the  second 
temple  a  guild  of  singers  was  known  by  this  name,  tracing  their 
descent  from  Levi  through  Kohath  and  Korah,  and  the  groups  of 
Pss.  xlii-xlix  and  Ixxxiv,  Ixxxv,  Ixxxvii  are  ascribed  in  some  sense 
'  to '  this  guild  or  company. 

The  question  is,  in  what  sense  :  and  two  chief  answers  are 
returned.  The  A.  V.  rendering  for  seems  to  imply  that  the  part 
of  the  Korahites  was  to  set  these  Psalms  to  music,  as  in  the 
phrase    '  For   the   precentor.'     It    is,    however,    now    generally 


THE   PSALMS  221 

accepted  that  the  preposition  should  be  rendered  as  in  R.  V.  of, 
corresponding  to  the  title  *  of  David,'  and  indicating  not  personal 
authorship,  but  the  name  of  a  collection — the  hymn-book,  if  we 
may  so  say,  of  the  Korahite  choir.  There  is  a  certain  family  like- 
ness in  these  Psalms,  partly  of  subject,  partly  of  style.  Many  of 
them  exhibit  strong  attachment  to  the  temple  and  its  service, 
whilst  there  is  a  strain  of  freshness,  not  easy  to  describe,  which 
distinguishes  their  language  from  the  smooth  and  conventional 
phraseology  of  the  latest  liturgical  Psalms. 

Psalms  XLII  and  XLIII.     The  Sigh  of  an  Exile. 

The  two  Psalms  numbered  xlii  and  xliii  in  the  Psalter  are 
evidently  closely  connected.  They  are  concerned  with  the  same 
theme,  breathe  the  same  spirit,  are  couched  in  the  same  style,  and 
are  marked  by  the  recurrence  of  the  same  refrain.  All  the  Psalms 
in  Book  II  except  xliii  are  furnished  with  titles,  and  this  points  to 
the  fact  that  in  the  earliest  collection  it  formed  one  with  Ps.  xlii, 
as  it  now  does  in  a  large  number  of  Hebrew  MSS.  The  majority, 
however,  present  the  Psalms  separately,  as  do  all  the  ancient 
versions.  Hence  the  division  must  have  taken  place  early,  and  it 
is  possible  that  xliii  is  a  supplement  from  the  hand  of  the  same 
or  a  later  poet  attached  to  the  original  composition.  The  pro- 
bability is,  however,  that  the  whole  sixteen  verses  were  originally 
one  composition,  divided  later  into  two  for  liturgical  purposes,  just 
as  in  other  cases  Psalms  originally  distinct  have  been  combined 
for  similar  reasons. 

When  the  devout  Levite  lived  who  here  describes  his  love  for 
the  sanctuary,  and  under  what  circumstances  he  sang  of  his  sorrow 
on  account  of  banishment  from  it,  we  can  only  conjecture.  Dates 
have  been  assigned  to  the  Psalm  varying  from  the  time  of  David 
during  Absalom's  rebellion,  say  1023  B.C.  (Delitzsch),  to  the  time 
of  Antiochus  the  Great,  b.c.  198  (Cheyne).  It  is  not  likely  that  it 
was  written  so  early  as  the  former  date,  nor  so  late  as  the  latter. 
The  temple  is  standing,  its  services  are  being  carried  on,  and  the 
Psalmist  who  has  been  wont  to  join  in  these  is  now  prevented  from 
worshipping  with  the  great  congregation.  It  does  not  follow  that 
he  was  literally  an  exile,  and  he  appears  to  be  detained  in  North 
Palestine.  He  is  surrounded  by  heathen  enemies  who  taunt  him 
with  his  allegiance  to  Jehovah  :  he  hopes,  however,  to  be  delivered 
from  them  and  to  join  again  in  the  worship  that  he  loves.  The 
choice  of  dates  seems  to  lie  between  the  period  of  the  later 
Monarchy  and  that  shortly  after  the  Exile,  and  the  balance  of  pro- 
bability seems  to  be  in  favour  of  the  former,  perhaps  at  the  time 
of  one  of  the  Assyrian  invasions. 

The  poem  is  skilfully  constructed,  whether  the  word  '  Maschil  * 
indicates  this  or  not.  It  is  obviously  divided  into  three  parts  by 
the  recurrence  of  the  refrain  ^  Why  art  thou  cast  down,  O  my 


222  THE   PSALMS  42.  1-4 

42  For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  Maschil  of  the  sons  of  Korah. 

1  As  the  hart  panteth  after  the  water  brooks, 
So  panteth  my  soul  after  thee,  O  God. 

2  My  soul  thirsteth  for  God,  for  the  living  God : 
When  shall  I  come  and  appear  before  God  ? 

3  My  tears  have  been  my  meat  day  and  night, 

While  they  continually  say  unto  me,  Where  is  thy  God  ? 

4  These  things  I  remember,  and  pour  out  my  soul  within  me, 


soul  ? '  In  each  stanza  there  is  longing  and  hope,  but  the  plaintive 
Strain  is  somewhat  less  dominant  in  the  first,  xlii.  1-5,  than  in  the 
second,  6-1 1,  while  in  the  third,  Ps.  xliii,  hopefulness  decidedly 
prevails. 

1.  Render,  'As  a  hind  which  panteth.'  The  noun  is  common 
gender,  but  the  verb  is  feminine,  as  is  the  word  for  'soul'  in 
Hebrew  and  in  most  languages  when  metaphor  is  employed. 
The  word  translated  panteth  occurs  only  here  and  in  Joel  i.  20. 
Some  interpreters,  ancient  and  modern,  understand  it  to  mean  the 
peculiar  cry  of  the  stag,  but  it  is  tolerably  clear  that  it  indicates  the 
intense  longing  of  the  animal  for  water  in  a  period  of  drought. 

2.  Some  have  found  a  reference  in  the  phrase  the  living 
God  to  the  living,  or  running,  streams  which  are  so  greatly  to  be 
preferred  to  stagnant  pools.  This  is  unlikely;  we  are  rather  to 
understand  that  the  animula  vagula  blatidula,  the  timid,  eager, 
fluttering  soul  of  man,  cannot  be  satisfied  with  any  abstraction  to 
worship  and  to  trust  in,  but  longs  for  a  God  who  knows  and  feels 
and  loves  and  cares — One  who  is  strongly  contrasted  with  the 
'  dumb  idols '  of  the  heathen. 

The  phrase  appear  before  God  is  the  usual  formula  for  the 
annual  visits  to  the  temple  mentioned  in  Exod.  xxiii.  17  ;  compare 
'every  one  of  them  appeareth  before  God  in  Zion,'  Ps.  Ixxxiv.  7. 
The  expression  is  to  be  understood  literally  here  ;  the  spiritual 
blessing  is  closely  associated  with  the  earthly  sanctuary. 

3.  It  does  not  appear  who  are  the  foes  who  taunt  him  in  his 
sorrow.  Verse  10  and  xlii.  i,  2  make  it  most  probable  that  the 
'ungodly'  and  the  'adversaries'  are  not  Jews,  and  it  would 
appear  as  if  the  Psalmist  were  alone  amongst  men  who  neither 
acknowledged  Jehovah  nor  sympathized  with  him  in  trouble. 
At  the  same  time  the  Book  of  Job  and  many  Psalms  show,  and 
all  experience  confirms  the  truth,  that  co-religionists  may  be  most 
cruel  of  all  in  pressing  home  the  taunt  of  this  verse — God  hath 
forgotten  thee. 

4.  Memories  crowd  in  upon  bim,  but  here  the  '  remembering 


THE   PSALMS  42.  5  223 

How  I  went  with  the  throng,  and  led  them  to  the  house 

of  God, 
With  the  voice  of  joy  and  praise,  a  multitude  keeping 

holyday. 
Why  art  thou  cast  down,  O  my  soul  ?  5 

And  why  art  thou  disquieted  within  me  ? 
Hope  thou  in  God ;  for  I  shall  yet  praise  hiin 
For  the  health  of  his  countenance. 


happier  things '  is  not  '  sorrow's  crown  of  sorrow,'  but  affords  the 
truest  relief.  Render,  *  These  things  would  I  remember,  as 
I  pour  out  my  soul  within  me,'  viz.  *how  I  used  to  pass  with  the 
festal  throng,  how  I  used  to  lead  them  in  procession  to  the  house 
of  God,'  &c.  If  the  Psalmist  can  find  no  sympathy  around  him, 
he  will  recall  the  times  when  he  was  permitted  to  enjoy  the 
nearer  presence  of  God  in  the  company  of  multitudes  like-minded 
with  himself.  Witliin  me,  lit.  '■  upon  me.'  Compare  Ps.  cxxxi.  2, 
where  the  Psalmist  hushes  and  quiets  his  soul  like  a  fractious 
child.  Here  he  lets  it  have  full  course  to  weep  out  its  sorrows, 
recalling  brighter  days. 

5.  But  only  for  a  moment.  In  this  verse,  repeated  as  a  refrain 
and  forming  the  ruling  strain  of  the  Psalm,  the  believer  takes  his 
soul  to  task  for  indulging  a  natural  but  more  or  less  distrustful 
grief,  and  he  recalls  himself  to  the  abiding  Source  of  comfort  and 
hope. 

*  Why  dost  thou  bow  thyself  down,'  i.  e.  in  mourning  (compare 
Isa.  Iviii.  5,  *  to  bow  down  the  head  like  a  rush ')  *  and  moan 
within  me?'  ///.  'upon  me,'  as  in  the  last  verse.  It  was  the 
object  of  the  Psalmist's  enemies  to  induce  him  to  give  up  con- 
fidence in  a  God  who  would  not,  or  did  not,  help  him.  He 
discerns  that  his  one  ground  of  safety  is  to  cling  in  faith  to  One 
whose  very  presence  brings  deliverance.  R.  V.  marg.  *  help  '  is 
nearer  to  the  Hebrew  than  the  translation  '  health '  in  the  text. 

According  to  the  received  Hebrew  text,  the  last  line  should  be 
translated  '  for  the  help  of  his  countenance ' ;  or,  more  correctly, 
*his  countenance  is  salvation.'  R.  V.  marg.,  liowever,  shows  that 
an  alternative  reading  is  followed  by  the  versions,  according  to 
which  the  refrain  here  is  found  in  the  same  form  as  in  verse  11 
and  xUii.  5,  'Who  is  the  health  of  my  countenance,  and  my  God.' 
It  is  advisable  to  follow  this  reading,  since  the  construction  by 
which  the  rendering  of  R.  V.  text  is  obtained  from  the  Massoretic 
text  is  an  awkward  one.  The  chief  objection  is  that  this  removes 
the  words  O  my  God  from  the  opening  of  verse  6,  but  the  confusion 


224  THE   PSALMS  42.  6-8 

6  O  my  God,  my  soul  is  cast  down  within  me : 
Therefore  do  I  remember  thee  from  the  land  of  Jordan, 
And  the  Hermons,  from  the  hill  Mizar. 

7  Deep   calleth   unto   deep   at   the   noise   of    thy   water- 

spouts : 
All  thy  waves  and  thy  billows  are  gone  over  me. 

8  Yet  the  Lord  will  command  his  lovingkindness  in  the 

day-time. 
And  in  the  night  his  song  shall  be  with  me, 
Even  a  prayer  unto  the  God  of  my  life. 

has  probably  arisen  from  the  occurrence  of  the  word  Elohai  twice, 
once  at  the  end  of  verse  5  and  again  at  the  beginning  of  verse  6. 

6.  In  spite  of  the  rallying  cry  of  the  last  verse,  the  Psalmist's 
soul  is  still  bowed  down,  and  has  not  yet  recovered  sufficient 
strength  to  raise  herself.  In  this  strophe  the  dejection  is  even 
deeper  than  before.  The  region  described  here,  to  which  for  the 
time  the  Psalmist  is  confined,  is  in  the  far  north-east  of  Palestine, 
near  the  Caesarea  Philippi  of  later  days.  The  peaks  of  Hermon 
are  described  in  the  plural,  as  they  would  dominate  the  scene  on 
which  he  was  accustomed  to  gaze,  and  the  hill  Mizar  ('  little ') 
would  probably  indicate  a  lower  peak  in  the  neighbourhood. 
The  alteration  in  the  reading  proposed  by  Wellhausen,  which 
would  find  in  '  the  little  mountain '  a  reference  to  Zion,  is  far- 
fetched and  unnecessary. 

7.  For  at  the  noise  of  thy  waterspouts  read  '  In  the  voice  of 
thy  cataracts.'  The  scenery  suggests  this  striking  figure.  The 
rocks  of  the  neighbourhood,  in  the  spring  season  when  the  snows 
of  Hermon  melt,  are  covered  with  foaming  cascades,  and  the  im- 
petuous Jordan  would  be  a  rushing  torrent.  A  peculiar  word  is 
used  which  indicates  the  noise  of  water  rushing  out  from  a  narrow 
channel  or  orifice.  One  flood  seems  to  call  to  another,  and  to  make 
the  echoes  ring.  So  do  waves  of  trouble  in  succession  overwhelm 
the  Psalmist,  but  he  does  not  lose  sight  of  the  fact  that  these  are 
thy  hillows;  even  the  storms  are  under  God's  direction. 

8.  Hence  no  '■  Yet '  is  needed  at  the  beginning  of  this  verse,  and 
there  is  none  in  the  Hebrew.  Kirkpatrick,  as  well  as  many  earlier 
interpreters,  renders  the  verbs  of  this  verse  in  the  past  tense, 
making  these  clauses  to  contain  a  retrospect.  But  it  is  better  to 
understand  that  the  Psalmist  is  here  rallying  the  energies  of  his 
soul  to  trust  in  One  who  has  not  really  forgotten  him,  however 
appearances  may  point  that  way.  '  Out  of  the  depths '  he  cries, 
and  already  song  and  prayer  are  lifting  him  Godwards. 


THE    PSALMS  42.  9—43.  2  225 

I  will  say  unto  God  my  rock,  Why  hast  thou  forgotten  me  ?  9 
Why  go  I  mourning  because  of  the  oppression  of  the 

enemy  ? 
As  with  a  sword  in  my  bones,  mine  adversaries  reproach  10 

me; 
While  they  continually  say  unto  me,  Where  is  thy  God  ? 
Why  art  thou  cast  down,  O  my  soul  ?  1 1 

And  why  art  thou  disquieted  within  me  ? 
Hope  thou  in  God  :  for  I  shall  yet  praise  him, 
Who  is  the  health  of  my  countenance,  and  my  God. 

Judge  me,  O  God,  and  plead  my  cause  against  an  ungodly  43 

nation  : 
O  deliver  me  from  the  deceitful  and  unjust  man. 
For  thou  art  the  God  of  my  strength ;  why  hast  thou  cast  2 

me  off? 

9-11.  The  words  of  his  appeal  follow — firet  a  prayer,  then  a 
song.  Render  in  verse  9,  '  Let  me  say  unto  God  ' — I  will  address 
myself  to  the  God  of  my  life  and  the  rock  of  my  salvation,  and 
urge  before  Him  the  soul's  insistent  question,  Why  ?  Such  an 
expostulation  often  arises  from  Psalmist  and  prophet — why  this 
seeming  apathy  on  the  part  of  God,  which  gives  sore  occasion  to 
the  enemy  to  blaspheme  ?  Compare  Isa.  lii.  5.  Oppression  of 
the  enemy  here  points  to  foreign  invaders. 

Render  in  verse  lo,  '  As  though  they  would  crush  my  bones,' 
lit.  *  with  a  crushing  in  m}'  bones ' ;  compare  vi.  2,  '  my  bones  are 
vexed.'  The  very  framework  of  the  body  is  represented  as  being 
shaken  by  the  bitter  and  cruel  taunts  of  these  unbelievers  ;  as  we 
say,  'they  pierce  my  very  heart.'  The  Psalmist  responds  by 
chanting  his  refrain,  gathering  new  strength  by  the  repetition 
of  the  old  helpful  words. 

Psalm  XLIII. 

1.  If  the  verses  that  follow  did  not  originally  form  part  of 
Ps.  xlii,  they  must  be  understood  as  an  additional  stanza  written 
by  one  who  found  himself  in  similar  circumstances  of  trial,  and 
deliberately  set  himself  to  copy  the  strain  of  the  original  writer. 
An  ungodly  nation,  lit.  'loveless' — outside  the  covenant-bond  with 
God  and  man — clearly  points  to  heathen  destitute  of  pity,  upon 
whom  all  remonstrance  would  be  lost. 


226  THE    PSALMS  43.  3-5 

Why  go  I  mourning  because  of  the  oppression  of  the 
enemy  ? 

3  O  send  out  thy   Hght   and   thy  truth ;    let  them  lead 

me: 
Let  them  bring  me  unto  thy  holy  hill, 
And  to  thy  tabernacles. 

4  Then  will  I  go  unto  the  altar  of  God, 
Unto  God  my  exceeding  joy  ; 

And   upon   the   harp   will    I  praise  thee,  O   God,    my 
God. 

5  Why  art  thou  cast  down,  O  my  soul  ? 

^■^  And  why  art  thou  disquieted  within  me ? 
Hope  thou  in  God :  for  I  shall  yet  praise  him, 
JV/io  is  the  health  of  my  countenance,  and  my  God. 

2.  Why  g-o  I  mourning"?  A  peculiar  word  is  here  used  indi- 
cating a  walk  'sad,  solitary,  slow,'  and  we  might  render  'Why 
go  I  wearily  about  in  sadness  ? ' 

3.  A  prayer  for  deliverance  couched  in  unusual  but  suggestive 
language.  Lig-lit  and  Tr,utlx  may  be  regarded  as  twin  angels  of 
the  Presence  gi^i^ing  God's  servant  as  Moses  prayed  that  God 
would  guide  him,  Exod.  xxxiii.  15.  Later  Jewish  writers  find 
a  reference  to  the  Urim  and  Thummim  (Light  and  Perfection") 
of  Exod.  xxviii.  30,  Lev.  viii.  8,  which  Philo  in  his  allegorical 
fashion  regards  as  sj^mbohzing  the  two  virtues  Illumination  and 
Truth.  But  in  this  verse  we  find  grammatical  personification  of 
two  well-known  words,  not  an  allegorical  adaptation  of  a  passage 
in  the  Law.  The  Psalmist  prays  that  he  may  be  led  by  these  two 
celestial  Messengers  to  the  outward  and  material  sanctuary  which 
for  him  was  the  very  presence  of  God. 

4.  Then  will  I  go :  better  '  That  I  may  come  unto  the  altar, 
&c.  .  .  .  and  give  thanks  unto  Thee  upon  the  harp,  Elohim,  my 
God.'  This  last  somewhat  awkward  phrase  corresponds  in 
Elohistic  documents  to  the  much  more  natural  and  intelligible 
'  Jehovah  my  God.'     Compare  Exod.  xx,  a  and  Ps.  1.  7. 

5.  The  note  of  thanksgiving  and  joy  in  the  last  verse  rings  out 
more  clearly  than  in  any  previous  part  of  the  whole  Psalm,  and 
we  may  therefore  suppose  that  the  refrain  now  repeated  for  the 
third  time  is  to  be  sung  more  triumphantly  than  before.  The 
Psalmist  has  obtained  '  a  garland  for  ashes,  the  garment  of  praise 
for  the  spirit  of  heaviness,'  Isa,  Ixi.  3. 


THE   PSALMS   44.  i  227 

For  the  Chief  Musician ;  a  Psalm  of  the  sons  of  Korah.     Maschil.  44 
We  have  heard  with  our  ears,  O  God,  our  fathers  have  i 
told  us, 

Psalm  XLIV.     A  Prayer  in  National  Humiliation. 

The  chief  features  of  this  Psalm  are  that  (i)  it  is  distinctly 
national,  at  a  period  when  the  sense  of  national  life  was  strong 
and  a  Psalmist  could  speak  of  '  our  armies ' ;  (2)  very  serious 
disaster  had  overtaken  the  people,  to  all  appearance  more  than 
temporary  in  character  ;  (3)  these  calamities  are  not  viewed  as 
a  punishment  for  national  sin,  but  it  is  possible  to  plead  that  Israel 
has  been  faithful  to  Jehovah  and  is  in  no  danger  of  falling  into 
idolatry. 

It  is  not  easy  to  fix  upon  a  period  which  answers  to  this 
description,  if  we  bear  in  mind  also  that  the  Psalm  is  one  of  an 
Elohistic  collection,  occurring  early  in  the  second  book.  Some  of 
the  best  critics  confidently  pronounce  it  to  be  Maccabaean — a  view 
held  as  early  as  the  fourth  century,  and  maintained  by  Calvin,  as 
well  as  by  many  moderns.  Davidic  it  seems  impossible  to  suppose 
it,  in  spite  of  the  arguments  of  Delitzsch,  and  the  difficulty  of 
assigning  it  to  the  period  of  the  later  monarchy  lies  in  the  strong 
assertion  of  national  fidelity  to  Jehovah  and  of  freedom  from 
idolatry.  If,  however,  this  plea  be  considered,  as  it  probably  should, 
to  be  relative  only,  there  seems  no  reason  why  the  Psalm  should 
not  be  viewed  as  dating  from  the  period  of  reform  in  the  time  of 
Hezekiah,  when  the  country  was  suff'ering  from  the  Assyrian 
invasion.  All  the  details  cannot  be  made  to  fit  in  with  any  crisis 
in  the  Maccabaean  uprising,  though  it  is  undeniable  that  in  the 
general  features  of  the  picture  that  period  is  the  most  appropriate. 
The  chief  arguments  against  so  late  a  date  are  to  be  drawn  from 
the  position  of  the  Psalm  thus  early  in  the  second  book  of  the 
Psalter. 

The  outline  of  the  Psalm  is  clear.  Verses  1-3  celebrate  the 
deliverances  which  God  in  old  time  wrought  out  for  His  people. 
In  verses  4-8  the  Psalmist  claims  that  the  trust  of  the  people  in 
their  fathers'  God  is  still  complete  and  confident.  But  (9-16)  God 
has  forsaken  them  and  left  them  to  be  trampled  down  by  ruthless 
enemies,  although  (17-22)  they  have  been  faithful  to  their  part 
of  the  covenant  and  have  not  '  stretched  out  hands  to  any  strange 
god.'  An  urgent  plea  for  immediate  Divine  succour  (23-26)  closes 
the  Psalm. 

1.  This  appeal  to  the  past  is  common  in  the  writings  of  prophets 
and  Psalmists.  In  times  of  need  both  individuals  and  the  com- 
munity solaced  themselves  with  recollections  of  what  God  had 
done  for  His  people  at   the  time  of  the  Exodus   and  onwards. 


228  THE   PSALMS  44.  2-5 

What  work  thou  didst  in  their  days,  in  the  days  of  old. 

2  Thou  didst  drive  out  the  nations  with  thy  hand,  and 

plantedst  them  in ; 
Thou  didst  afflict  the  peoples,  and  didst  spread  them 
abroad. 

3  For  they  gat  not  the  land  in  possession  by  their  own  sword, 
Neither  did  their  own  arm  save  them  : 

But  thy  right  hand,  and  thine  arm,  and  the  light  of  thy 

countenance, 
Because  thou  hadst  a  favour  unto  them. 

4  Thou  art  my  King,  O  God  : 
Command  deliverance  for  Jacob. 

5  Through  thee  will  we  push  down  our  adversaries  : 


The  days  of  old  does  not  necessarily  imply  a  very  late  date  for 
the  Psalm  :  compare  ^  the  ancient  times '  in  Isa.  xxxvii.  26. 

2.  The  settlement  in  Canaan  rather  than  the  Exodus  is  fixed 
upon  as  an  illustration  of  God's  intervention,  because  the  trouble 
in  the  Psalm  was  the  overrunning  of  the  country  by  heathen. 
At  the  conquest  of  Canaan  the  position  was  reversed.  Emphasis 
is  to  be  laid  upon  them,  i.  e.  our  fathers,  in  each  line  of  the  verse. 
*  They  have  told  us  how  it  was  they,  themselves,  whom  Thou  didst 
plant  and  cause  to  multiply.'  The  metaphor  is  that  of  a  tree  which 
is  first  deeply  implanted  in  the  soil  and  then  spreads  abroad  its 
branches  in  beauty  and  strength.     See  Ps.  Ixxx.  8-10. 

3.  Render,  '■  For  not  by  their  own  sword  did  they  get  posses- 
sion ' ;  they  understood,  as  do  we  their  descendants  in  recalling  the 
history  that  has  been  handed  down,  where  the  secret  of  their 
strength  lay.  Thou  hadst  a  favour  unto  them  is  the  only  ex- 
planation of  Israel's  success  ;  see  Deut.  vii.  7,  &c. 

4.  A  sudden  and  impressive  turn,  with  an  emphatic  use  of  the  3rd 
personal  pronoun — '  Thou,  even  Thou  Thyself  art  my  King' ;  the 
emphasis  being  strengthened  by  the  use  of  the  singular  'my.' 
The  Psalmist  speaks  for  the  nation,  but  the  individualistic  form  of 
speech  brings  home  more  closely  the  thought  of  God's  personal 
relation  to  His  people.  The  plural  deliverances  implies  full  and 
complete  salvation. 

5.  Push  down,  as  with  the  horns  of  the  wild  ox,  Deut.  xxxiii. 
17,  or  with  the  horns  of  iron  used  symbolically  by  Zedekiah  in 
I  Kings  xxii.  1 1.  Tread  under  and  trample  down  implies  a  similar 
metaphor  drawn  from  the  wild  beast,  Ps.  Ix.  12  ;  Isa.  xiv.  25. 


THE  PSALMS  44.  6-11  229 

Through  thy  name  will  we  tread  them  under  that  rise  up 

against  us. 
For  I  will  not  trust  in  my  bow,  6 

Neither  shall  my  sword  save  me. 

But  thou  hast  saved  us  from  our  adversaries,  7 

And  hast  put  them  to  shame  that  hate  us. 
In  God  have  we  made  our  boast  all  the  day  long,  8 

And  we  will  give  thanks  unto  thy  name  for  ever.    [Selah 

But  now  thou  ha5t  cast  us  off,  and  brought  us  to  dis-  9 

honour; 
And  goest  not  forth  with  our  hosts. 

Thou  makest  us  to  turn  back  from  the  adversary :  k 

And  they  which  hate  us  spoil  for  themselves. 
Thou  hast  given  us  like  sheep  appointed  for  meat ;  i  ] 

And  hast  scattered  us  among  the  nations. 

6.  This  is  one  of  the  verses  reUed  upon  by  those  who  maintain 
a  Maccabaean  authorship  for  the  Psalm.  The  parallel  is  very  close 
with  I  Mace.  iii.  18,  19,  '  victory  in  battle  standeth  not  in  the 
multitude  of  a  host,'  but  Isaiah  had  taught  the  same  lesson  to 
Hezekiah  long  before,  see  2  Kings  xix. 

7,8.  But— or  perhaps  better,  'For' — 'it  is  Thou  who  hast 
saved  us '  ;  we,  as  well  as  our  fathers,  have  experienced  Thy 
goodness  and  in  Thee  we  still  put  our  trust. 

9.  Again  a  sudden  change.  But  now  is  the  best  way  of  render- 
ing a  conjunction  which  properly  implies  addition,  also,  or  further- 
more.' Here  it  might  be  paraphrased  '  and  then  Thou  goest  on 
to  ' ;  the  very  unexpectedness  of  the  sequel  and  God's  desertion  of 
His  own  people  constituting  the  force  of  the  appeal.  The  phrase 
•  our  armies '  in  A.  V.— better,  hosts,  R.  V.— gives  a  false  impression 
if  it  be  understood  in  the  modern  sense  of  a  nation  that  maintains 
a  standing  army.  The  same  word  is  used  of  the  '  companies ' 
that  marched  forth  from  Egypt,  Exod.  xii.  41,  and  is  employed 
here  in  the  same  general  sense. 

10.  Per  themselves,  i.  e.  at  their  will,  or  to  their  heart's 
content. 

11.  Some  are  butchered  ;  others  sold  for  slaves.  There  is 
nothing  distinctive  in  the  phraseology  here  which  would  fix  the 
period  referred  to.  Deportation  occurred  two  or  three  times  under 
the  Assyrians,  and  again  at  the  time  of  the  Babylonish  captivity ; 


230  THE    PSALMS  44.  12-17 

1 2  Thou  sellest  thy  people  for  nought, 

And  hast  not  increased  //ly  wealth  by  their  price. 

n  Thou  makest  us  a  reproach  to  our  neighbours, 

A  scorn  and  a  derision  to  them  that  are  round  about  us. 

14  Thou  makest  us  a  byword  among  the  nations, 
A  shaking  of  the  head  among  the  peoples. 

15  All  the  day  long  is  my  dishonour  before  me, 
And  the  shame  of  my  face  hath  covered  me, 

16  For  the  voice  of  him  that  reproacheth  and  blasphemeth ; 
By  reason  of  the  enemy  and  the  avenger. 

17  All  this  is  come  upon  us  ;  yet  have  we  not  forgotten  thee, 
Neither  have  we  dealt  falsely  in  thy  covenant. 

again  under  the  Persians  at  the  time  of  Artaxerxes  Ochus   many 
Jews  were  sold  as  captives,  and  again  by  Antiochus  Epiphanes.  . 

12.  A  bitter  reproach.  '  Thine  own  people  are  sold — for  a  mere 
nothing  ;  and  Thou  hast  made  no  gain  by  the  price  paid  for  them.' 
The  boldness  of  this  mode  of  speech  concerning  God  does  not 
imply  irreverence.  It  is  paralleled  in  Isa.  Hi.  3,  5,  and  the  meaning 
for  religion  is  that  the  cause  of  God  suffers  by  the  overthrow  of 
His  people.  This  is  hinted  at  in  verse  16,  is  stated  plainly  in 
Isa.  lii.  5,  and  was  distinctly  proved  by  the  words  of  Rabshakeh, 
2  Kings  xviii.  19,  &c. 

13,  14.  Shame  and  derision  have  come  upon  God's  people  and 
that  from  two  quarters— neigrhbours  and  those  round  about  us, 
such  as  Edom,  Ammon  and  Moab,  more  or  less  akin  to  Israel,  and 
the  nations,  understood  of  distinctly  heathen  peoples  at  a  greater 
distance.  Even  allowing  somewhat  for  poetical  hj^pcrbole.  it  is 
not  easy  to  find  a  condition  of  things  corresponding  to  this.  The 
Maccabaean  period  is  not  suitable  ;  perhaps  none  on  the  whole 
fits  the  description  better  than  that  of  Sennacherib  and  Hezekiah. 

15,  16.  Again  the  Psalmist  individualizes.  Personal  shame  is 
most  acutely  felt ;  every  Jew  would  feel  outraged  and  disgraced 
by  the  taunts  of  a  Rabshakeh.  Those  who  insulted  God's  people 
did  dishonour  to  Himself,  and  all  blasphemy  against  God  is 
personally  resented  by  His  faithful  servants.  See  the  close 
parallels  of  Ps.  Ixix.  6,  7,  9,  '  the  reproaches  of  them  that  re- 
proach thee  are  fallen  upon  me.' 

17-19.  The  assertion  of  national  innocence  which  follows  is 
striking  and  presents  some  difficulties.  It  forms  the  strongest 
argument  for  a  Maccabaean  date,  as  the  utterance  of  a  martyr- 
church-nalion.    Of  no  period  before  the  Exile  could  it  be  said  ihat 


THE   PSALMS   44.  18-23  231 

Our  heart  is  not  turned  back,  18 

Neither  have  our  steps  decHned  from  thy  way ; 

That  thou  hast  sore  broken  us  in  the  place  of  jackals,        19 

And  covered  us  with  the  shadow  of  death. 

If  we  have  forgotten  the  name  of  our  God,  20 

Or  spread  forth  our  hands  to  a  strange  god ; 

Shall  not  God  search  this  out  ?  2 1 

For  he  knoweth  the  secrets  of  the  heart. 

Yea,  for  thy  sake  are  we  killed  all  the  day  long  ;  22 

We  are  counted  as  sheep  for  the  slaughter. 

Awake,  why  sleepest  thou,  O  Lord  ?  23 

Arise,  cast  us  not  off  for  ever. 


Israel  or  Judah  was  free  from  the  taint  of  idolatry.  But  then  of 
no  period  at  all  can  the  language  of  these  verses  be  said  to  be  true, 
if  taken  in  its  full  strength.  It  must  be  comparative  fidelity  that  is 
here  asserted,  as  is  suggested  by  verse  19,  '  that  Thou  shouldest 
have  (thus)  sore  broken  us,'  &c.  In  the  time  of  Josiah,  for  example, 
or  in  the  period  of  reform  under  Hezekiah  such  words  might 
fairly  be  used  on  the  part  of  the  nation  when  striving  to  be  loyal  to 
the  covenant  with  Jehovah.  They  were  not  conscious  of  national 
apostasy  such  as  would  warrant  so  severe  a  punishment.  The 
place  of  jackals  and  the  shadow  of  death  refer  to  the  terrible 
devastation  which  had  made  of  the  country  a  desert. 

20,  21.  The  national  conscience  is  clear.  The  Psalmist  makes 
bold  to  appeal  to  the  Omniscient  that  the  people  have  been 
worshipping  Jehovah  and  trying  to  fulfil  His  law  and  have  not 
'  spread  forth  hands '  in  prayer  to  any  strange  god.  It  may  be 
rendered  '  If  we  had  forgotten,  would  not  God  have  searched 
it  out  ? ' 

22.  If  the  translation  Yea  be  preserved,  the  connexion  is, '  Yea, 
Thou  knowest  that  it  is  for  our  fidelity  we  suffer.'  The  rendering 
'Nay  but'  is  better;  so  far  from  having  laid  themselves  open  to 
such  punishment,  a  sense  as  of  Divine  injustice  oppresses  them. 
Martyrdom  in  the  Christian  sense,  as  intended  by  Paul  when 
he  quoted  these  words  in  Rom.  viii.  36,  was  not  for  the  most  part 
understood  by  the  Jews  ;  it  was  to  them  a  hardship  and  an 
unintelligible  one,  that  God's  people  should  suffer. 

23.  This  is  shown  by  the  bold  apostrophe,  why  sleepest  thou? 
A  God  who  thus  leaves  His  people  to  their  fate  must  be  slumbering. 
The  Talmud  tells  us  that  in  the  time  of  John  Hyrcanus  these 
words  were  used  in  the  temple  in  such  a  way  as  to  cause  him  to 


232  THE   PSALMS  44.  24—45.  i 

24  Wherefore  hidest  thou  thy  face, 

And  forgettest  our  affliction  and  our  oppression  ? 

25  For  our  soul  is  bowed  down  to  the  dust : 
Our  belly  cleaveth  unto  the  earth. 

26  Rise  up  for  our  help, 

And  redeem  us  for  thy  lovingkindness'  sake. 

45       For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  set  to  Shoshannim  ;  a  Psalm  of  the 
sons  of  Korah.     Maschil.     A  Song  of  loves. 

I  My  heart  overfloweth  with  a  goodly  matter : 

rebuke  the  Levites  who  used  them,  saying,  '  Does  God  sleep  ? 
Hath  not  the  Scripture  said,  Behold  He  that  keepeth  Israel 
slumbereth  not  ? '  But  the  meaning  of  the  words  depends  on  the 
spirit  in  which  they  are  used.  The  piety  and  confidence  in  God 
of  this  Psalmist  was  no  less  complete  than  that  of  Hyrcanus  or 
the  writer  of  Ps.  cxxi.  4. 

24-26.  The  '  sleeping '  referred  to  is  here  explained  as 
synonymous  with  *  hiding  of  the  face  '  or  apparent  forgetfulness  ; 
and  the  '  awaking '  is  equivalent  to  '  rising  up  for  the  help '  of 
a  suffering  yet  faithful  people.  The  plea  that  God  would  act  '  for 
His  own  lovingkindness'  sake '  shows  that  verse  23  expresses  the 
boldness  of  faith,  not  of  scepticism. 

Psalm  XLV.     A  Royal  Marriage-Song. 

Two  things  seera  tolerably  clear  about  this  Psalm.  First,  that 
its  occasion  was  the  marriage  of  a  king,  and  secondly  that  the 
epithalamium  far  transcend^  its  occasion.  With  the  view  that 
the  Psalm  is  allegorical  throughout,  that  it  has  no  historical  basis, 
but  was  primarily  intended  to  refer  to  spiritual  truth  and  the 
relation  between  God  and  His  people,  we  have  no  sympathy,  and 
such  allegorizing  exposition  happily  does  not  find  the  favour  it 
once  did.  But  it  is  almost  equally  certain  that  the  Psalmist  does 
idealize  and  spiritualize  the  event  he  celebrated.  Not  merely  that 
he  uses  poetical  hyperbole,  nor  that  in  customary  Oriental  fashion 
he  glorifies  the  king  and  his  surroundings,  though  both  these 
features  are  present.  But  the  position  of  this  ode  in  the  midst  of 
a  number  of  sacred  songs,  chiefly  intended  for  temple-worship, 
goes  far  to  show  that  in  the  intention  of  the  writer,  or  at  least  in 
the  opinion  of  the  Jewish  church,  more  was  intended  than  meets 
the  eye  of  the  ordinary  reader.  A  royal  marriage — of  a  king 
with  a  king's  daughter — amongst  the  chosen  people  Israel,  could 
not  be  regarded  as  a  mere  secular  alliance.     If  king  and  queen 


THE   PSALMS  45.  i  233 

I   speak  the   things   which  I  have  made  touching   the 
king: 

understood  their  position,  their  union  was  encompassed  by 
associations  and  fraught  with  issues  much  more  important  than 
those  upon  which  a  conventional  court-poet  would  descant  at 
Tyre  or  Damascus  or  Nineveh.  And  though  the  sacred  lessons 
of  the  event  are  not  worked  out  by  the  Psalmist,  they  are 
suggested,  and  the  instinct  of  later  generations,  from  the  Targum 
vyriters  onwards,  has  not  been  at  fault  in  surmising  that  '  a  greater 
than  Solomon  is  here.'  But  how  far  and  in  what  sense  that 
deeper  significance  is  to  be  admitted,  is  a  question  to  which  sound 
exegesis  will  be  very  careful  in  giving  an  answer. 

One  proof  that  the  historical  occasion  was  not  all-important  in 
the  mind  of  the  Psalmist  is  to  be  found  in  the  difficulty  of 
determining  who  is  intended  and  what  period  is  referred  to. 
A  Psalm  which  by  competent  exegeles  has  been  referred  to 
Solomon,  to  Ahab,  to  Jehoram,  to  Jeroboam  II,  to  a  Persian 
monarch,  to  a  Syrian  Alexander  and  to  Ptolemy  Philadelphus, 
cannot  have  been  intended  to  celebrate  with  any  minute  accuracy 
the  immediate  and  local  glories  of  any  king.  The  oldest  and  for 
long  the  prevailing  view,  still  advocated  by  some  able  critics, 
refers  the  Psalm  to  the  marriage  of  Solomon  with  an  Eg3ptian 
princess,  i  Kings  iii.  i.  The  mention  of  a  daughter  of  Tyre  has 
suggested  the  name  of  Ahab,  who  also  possessed  a  palace  of 
ivory,  i  Kings  xxii.  39.  Delitzsch  defends  with  skill  his  theory 
that  the  marriage  of  Jehoram  with  Athaliah  is  intended.  Finally, 
Cheyne  argues  in  favour  of  Ptolemy  Philadelphus,  an  Egyptian 
sovereign  who  did  indeed  patronize  and  promote  literature,  but 
who  slew  two  of  his  own  brothers  and  married  his  sister. 
Some  critics,  who  are  not  satisfied  to  assign  an  early  date  to  the 
Psalm,  consider  that  Solomon  is  here  celebrated  by  a  later 
Psalmist  who  idealizes  the  traditions  of  *  Solomon  in  all  his  glory.' 
The  choice  seems  to  lie  between  this  view  and  the  supposition 
that  one  of  the  kings  of  the  later  monarchy  is  referred  to,  whose 
royal  descent  and  status  and  privileges  are  dwelt  upon,  rather 
than  any  remarkable  excellence  of  personal  character. 

The  writer  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Hebrews  (i,  8,  9)  is  in  harmony 
with  the  general  tenor  of  Jewish  interpretation  in  applying  the 
words  of  verse  6  to  the  Messiah.  The  figure  of  marriage  is  used 
both  in  the  Old  and  New  Testaments  to  symbolize  the  covenant- 
relation  between  God  and  His  people,  and  the  author  of  a 
Psalm  centuries  before  Christ,  equally  with  Paul  the  writer  of 
Eph.  V.  23-32,  would  find  nothing  forced  or  unnatural  in  applying 
language  used  to  describe  the  sacred  relation  between  man  and 
wife  to  the  still  more  sacred  relation  between  God  and  the  Church. 


2S4  THE   PSALMS  45.  2,  3 

My  tongue  is  the  pen  of  a  ready  writer. 
Thou  art  fairer  than  the  children  of  men ; 
Grace  is  poured  into  thy  lips : 
Therefore  God  hath  blessed  thee  for  ever. 
Gird  thy  sword  upon  thy  thigh,  O  mighty  one, 
Thy  glory  and  thy  majesty. 


The  title  is  long  and  composite.  The  clauses  Por  the  Precentor, 
of  the  sons  of  Korah,  Maschil,  are  explained  in  the  Introductions, 
pp.  14-16,  220,  221.  A  Song'  of  loves  describes  the  subject-matter 
and  set  to  'Ulies'  indicates  the  tune  to  which  the  Psalm  was  sung. 

1.  The  rhythm  of  this  verse  might  be  literally,  if  roughly  ren- 
dered somewhat  as  follows — 

*  My  heart  overfloweth,  goodly  is  the  theme  : 
I  am  speaking,  my  work  is  for  a  king  : 
My  tongue  is  a  pen — a  ready  scribe.' 

This  exordium  seems  to  point  to  a  subject  which  inspires  the 
writer  as  the  mere  wedding  of  a  secular  prince,  however  joyful 
and  auspicious,  would  not  influence  a  Hebrew  Psalmist.  Already, 
at  the  outset  he  is  lifted  above  the  mere  outward  aspects  of  the 
event, 

2.  Verses  2-9  describe  the  bridegroom,  his  personal  excellences, 
the  dignity  of  his  position,  and  the  extent  of  his  kingdom  and 
influence. 

Two  qualities  are  selected  for  eulogy  here  ;  physical  beauty  and 
gracious  speech  and  demeanour,  both  being  understood  as  indica- 
tions of  a  noble  and  truly  royal  character.  Therefore— i.  e.  the 
Psalmist  argues  and  all  men  may  conclude — that  the  blessing  of 
God  rests  upon  this  scion  of  a  favoured  house  and  will  rest  upon 
his  descendants,  for  ever.  ,  This  language  is  not  to  be  understood 
as  literally  true  of  a  particular  individual,  nor  as  the  mere  flattery 
of  a  courtier,  but  as  a  description  of  what  a  Jewish  king  should 
be,  what  the  individual  in  question  might  be  and  to  a  considerable 
extent  was. 

3.  Verses  3-5  strike  a  martial  note.  It  does  not  follow  that 
the  king  was  a  noted  warrior,  or  that  he  was  about  to  enter  on  a 
campaign.  He  is  addressed  as  a  '  mighty  hero,'  and  the  Psalmist 
in  prophetic  spirit  anticipates  victory  for  his  arms  and  bids 
him  use  his  power  righteously  and  well.  R.  V.  shows  that  '  glory 
and  majesty '  are  attributes  with  which  this  king  is  to  gird  himself, 
just  as  he  girds  himself  with  the  sword  and  other  insignia  of 
royalty.  The  words  used  are  such  as  can  properly  apply  only  to 
a  king  who  is  God's  vicegerent. 


THE   PSALMS   45.  4-6  235 

And  in  thy  majesty  ride  on  prosperously, 

Because  of  truth  and  meekness  and  righteousness  : 

And  thy  right  hand  shall  teach  thee  terrible  things. 

Thine  arrows  are  sharp ; 

The  peoples  fall  under  thee ; 

They  are  in  the  heart  of  the  king's  enemies. 

Thy  throne,  O  God,  is  for  ever  and  ever : 

4.  Render,  *  Pass  through,  ride  on,  in  the  -cause  of  truth, 
humility  and  righteousness,  and  let  thy  right  hand  teach  thee 
terrible  things,'  R.  V.  marg.  The  opening  word  And  in  thy 
majesty  seems  to  have  crept  in  by  mistake  from  the  last  verse. 
It  might  well  have  been  repeated  for  the  sake  of  emphasis,  but 
the  construction  does  not  readily  admit  of  this.  The  king  is  bid- 
den to  use  his  strength  not  only  to  defend  the  true  and  the  right, 
but  in  all  kindly  clemency  to  care  for  the  meek,  i.  e.  the  oppressed 
who  cannot,  or  will  not  assert  themselves.  If  this  be  his  aim, 
the  poet  exhorts  him  to  put  forth  all  his  energy  and  he  shall  be 
able  to  perform  awe-inspiring  deeds.  The  phraseology  here  again 
is  more  properly  used  of  God,  see  2  Sam.  vii.  23,  Isa.  Ixiv.  3,  and 
of  the  king  as  God's  representative. 

5.  The  language  here  is  condensed  and  abrupt,  the  second  line 
forming  a  kind  of  parenthesis  between  the  first  and  third.  The 
R.  v.,  however,  gives  the  meaning  well,  and  the  vigour  of  the 
Psalmist's  *  rapid  pen  '  is  obvious.  First  the  arrows  are  seen  hurt- 
ling through  the  air,  then  the  hostile  ranks  are  thinned  as  one 
enemy  after  another  falls,  lastly  the  shafts  are  found  to  have  pene- 
trated the  very  hearts  of  the  king's  foes. 

6.  The  Psalmist  now  turns  more  specifically  to  the  king's 
moral  qualities,  which  are  described  from  the  ideal  point  of  view. 
In  this  and  the  following  verse  is  described  what  every  Jewish 
king  ought  to  be  and  it  is  hoped  this  king  may  be,  perhaps  is. 
The  translation  of  the  first  line  has  been  much  debated,  on  the 
score  of  text,  grammar  and  theology.  If  the  received  text  be 
correct,  the  following  renderings  are  possible. 

a.  Tliy  throne,  O  God,  as  in  A.  V.,  R.  V.  text,  the  versions  and 
all  the  older  commentators.  If  the  Psalm  is  not  directly  Messianic, 
however,  this  direct  address  to  the  king  as  Elohim  is  strangely 
bold.  To  say  that  the  judges  were  sometimes  described  as 
Elohim  (Exod.  xxi.  6,  &c.),  if  it  be  true  that  they  were  ;  or  that 
the  house  of  David  shall  be  '  as  God,'  Zech.  xii.  8 ;  or  that  the 
word  Elohim  is  sometimes  used  in  a  secondary  and  lower  sense — 
is  hardly  enough  to  warrant  this  direct  address  to  the  king  in  the 
vocative,  O  Elohim  \    b.  '  God  is  thy  throne '  or  '  thy  throne  is 


236  THE   PSALMS  45.  7,  8 

A  sceptre  of  equity  is  the  sceptre  of  thy  kingdom. 

7  Thou  hast  loved  righteousness,  and  hated  wickedness  : 
Therefore  God,  thy  God,  hath  anointed  thee 

With  the  oil  of  gladness  above  thy  fellows. 

8  All  thy  garments  smell  of  myrrh,  and  aloes,  and  cassia ; 


God  ' — two  ways  of  saying  that  the  monarchy  is  divinely  founded 
and  supported.  But  the  first  is  a  very  awkward  way  of  express- 
ing such  a  truth  and  it  is  questionable  whether  the  second  is 
idiomatically  admissible,  c.  Some  of  the  best  authorities  favour 
the  rendering  of  R.  V,  marg.  'Thy  throne  is  the  throne  of  God.' 
This  interpretation,  if  not  the  simplest  and  most  obvious,  is  most 
in  harmony  with  verse  7,  with  the  rest  of  the  Psalm  and  the 
usage  of  O.  T.  It  reminds  the  king  of  his  theocratic  dignity,  that 
he  rules  in  virtue  of  Divine  authority  and  ought  to  govern  in 
accordance  with  this  fundamental  thought  of  Israelitish  monarchy, 
as  laid  down  e.  g.  in  2  Sam.  vii. 

In  Heb.  i.  8  the  LXX  is  quoted,  and  the  Greek  permits  (1)  Thy 
throne,  O  God,  (2)  God  is  thy  throne,  (3)  Thy  throne  is  God, 
as  possible  renderings.  Almost  all  ancient  commentators  take  it 
for  granted  that  (i)  is  the  meaning.  Bishop  Westcott,  however, 
argues  for  (2)  and  contends  that  the  argument  of  the  writer  of 
Hebrews  is  perhaps  more  cogent  if  the  office  and  endowment  of 
the  Son  are  described  as  Divine,  than  if  the  Divine  name  be 
ascribed  to  Him,  for  this  latter  '  would  obscure  the  thought.'  It 
must  certainly  be  said  that  in  interpreting  the  Hebrew  and  expound- 
ing the  Psalm,  either  Elohim  is  used  abruptly  and  strangely  in  its 
direct  application  to  the  king,  even  in  its  lower  sense,  as  in  R.  V. 
text,  or  better,  in  the  present  writer's  judgement,  the  translation 
of  R.  V.  margin  should  be  accepted. 

7.  The  phrase  God,  thy  ^d  in  an  Elohistic  Psalm  stands  for 
the  more  natural  and  normal  '  Jehovah,  thy  God '  elsewhere. 
The  occurrence  of  this  phrase  here  is  an  additional  argument  for 
refusing  to  believe  that  the  king  is  called  Elohim  and  for  adopting 
the  rendering  advocated  above. 

'  Anoint  with  the  oil  of  gladness '  does  not  refer  to  the  con- 
secration of  the  king  to  his  office,  but  to  the  rejoicings  of  the 
marriage-day  and  the  general  tokens  of  prosperity,  symbolized  by 
oil  ;  compare  'oil  of  joy '  in  Isa.  Ixi.  3. 

8.  The  spices  here  mentioned  must  not  be  confounded  v/ith  the 
myrrh  and  aloes  of  modern  commerce.  Myrrh  was  an  Arabic 
balsam  ;  aloes  the  product  of  an  aromatic  Indian  tree,  now  known 
as  eagle-\yood  ;  the  word  translated  cassia  is  not  the  same  as 
that  in   Exod.   xxx.   24,  an   ingredient   of    the   sacred    oil,  but 


THE   PSALMS  45.  9-T2  237 

Out   of  ivory  palaces  stringed  instruments  have  made 

thee  glad. 
Kings'  daughters  are  among  thy  honourable  women  :         9 
At  thy  right  hand  doth  stand  the  queen  in  gold  of  Ophir. 
Hearken,  O  daughter,  and  consider,  and  incline  thine  ear  :  10 
Forget  also  thine  own  people,  and  thy  father's  house ; 
So  shall  the  king  desire  thy  beauty  :  11 

For  he  is  thy  Lord ;  and  worship  thou  him. 
And  the  daughter  of  Tyre  shall  be  there  with  a  gift ;  1 2 

Even  the  rich  among  the  people  shall  intreat  thy  favour. 

indicates  a  powdered  fragrant  bark,  akin  to  cinnamon.     Spicery 
and  unguents  are  both  characteristic  of  Oriental  festivity. 

The  interior  of  the  king's  palace  is  magnificent  with  inlaid 
ivory  ;  music— the  word  is  unusual,  but  there  is  no  doubt  that 
R.  V.  correctly  gives  the  meaning — sounds  through  the  halls  as 
the  ro5'al  bridegroom  arrives. 

9.  One  element  of  dignity  remains  to  be  mentioned,  the 
numerous  highborn  wives  of  the  monarch.  The  blending  of 
actual  with  ideal  is  here  most  marked.  Polygamy  was,  however, 
practised  by  patriarchs  and  kings  and  was  permitted,  though  not 
directly  sanctioned  in  O.  T.  The  title  used  for  the  queen-consort, 
who  occupies  the  place  of  honour,  is  a  late  one  connected  with 
the  Persian,  see  Neh.  ii.  6  ;  Dan.  v.  23.  It  is  possible,  however, 
that  this  word,  like  that  for  '  stringed  instruments,'  is  a  mark  of 
North  Palestinian  dialect. 

OpMr  has  not  been  certainly  identified.  Probably  the  gold 
was  found  in  Eastern  Arabia,  though  conjecture  has  connected 
the  name  of  Solomon  (see  i  Kings  xxvii.  28)  with  the  very  ancient 
gold-mines  of  Zimbabwe  in  Mashona-land. 

10,  11.  The  bride  is  addressed  in  terms  appropriate  to  a 
foreigner  who  had  as  yet  hardly  seen  her  husband,  but  whose  dutj' 
it  was  to  make  his  home  and  religion  her  own.  The  typical  or 
allegorical  meaning  of  the  Psalm  cannot  appropriately  be  pressed 
in  detail,  when  the  references  to  Oriental  ideas  of  marriage  are 
concerned. 

Render,  'For  he  is  thy  lord  and  do  thou  homage  unto  him.' 
The  lordship  intended  is  that  recognized  authority  of  the  husband 
(Gen.  xviii.  12),  which  demanded  submission  from  the  wife.  To 
translate  Iiord  is  misleading  and  in  conjunction  with  the  word 
worship  tends  to  confuse  the  allegorical  with  the  literal  meaning. 

12.  The  interpretation  of  this  verse  which  would  make  it  one 
sentence,  addressed  to  the  queen  as  a  Tyrian  princess,  '  And, 


238  THE   PSALMS  45.  13-17 

13  The  king's  daughter  within  the  palace  is  all  glorious: 
Her  clothing  is  inwrought  with  gold. 

14  She  shall  be  led  unto  the  king  in  broidered  work : 
The  virgins  her  companions  that  follow  her 
Shall  be  brought  unto  thee. 

15  With  gladness  and  rejoicing  shall  they  be  led : 
They  shall  enter  into  the  king's  palace. 

1 6  Instead  of  thy  fathers  shall  be  thy  children, 
Whom  thou  shalt  make  princes  in  all  the  earth. 

1 7  I  will  make  thy  name  to  be  remembered  in  all  generations  : 

O  daughter  of  Tyre,  the  rich  shall  intreat  thy  favour,'  though 
influentially  supported,  is  open  to  many  objections.  The  verse  is 
best  understood  as  consisting  of  two  clauses,  one  predicate  serving 
for  both.     Render  : — 

*  And  the  daughter  of  Tyre  shall  seek  thy  favour  with  a  gift, 
Yea  the  richest  among  the  peoples  shall  thus  do  homage.' 
The  important  service  rendered  by  Hiram  to  Solomon  probably 
suggested  the  idea  that  the  city  of  Tyre,  the  wealthiest  of  all  the 
neighbouring  powers,  should  thus  pay  respect  to  the  new  king 
and  queen. 

13.  R.  V.  makes  clear  the  meaning  of  within  ;  the  inner  part 
of  the  house  belongs  to  the  women,  and  the  queen's  state  apart- 
ments are  referred  to,  from  which  she  passes  to  the  presence- 
chamber  to  meet  her  lord. 

14,  15.  The  state  procession  is  here  described.  The  'embroid- 
ered work '  here  mentioned  has  been  understood  (i)  of  the  varie- 
gated carpets  on  which  the  queen  walks,  (2)  of  the  tapestry-lined 
rooms  through  which  she  passes,  and  (3)  of  the  embroidered 
raiment  in  which  she  is  clothed.  The  last  explanation  is  to  be 
preferred.  Bridesmaids  in  considerable  numbers  would  form  not 
only  part  of  the  wedding  procession,  but  afterwards  of  the  ro3'al 
household.  References  to  these  marriage  customs  are  to  be  found 
in  Jer.  vii.  34  ;  i  Mace.  ix.  37  ;  Matt.  xxv.  i,  and  in  the  Song  of 
Songs. 

16,  1^.  A  closing  address  to  the  king.  The  offspring  of  the 
marriage  is  to  be  numerous  and  distinguished.  The  Psalmist 
speaks  as  a  prophet  and  partly  wishes,  partly  foretells,  that  the 
memory  of  the  prince  he  celebrates  shall  be  widespread  and  long 
continued.  His  sons  are  to  be  princes  not  only  '  in  all  the  land,' 
as  some  would  render  it,  but  in  all  the  earth  ;  for  the  peoples, 
i.  e.  nations  generally,  will  in  future  days  praise  or  give  thanks  to 
him  as  a  renowned  and  beneficent  monarch. 


THE   PSALMS  46.  i  239 

Therefore  shall  the  peoples  give  thee  thanks  for  ever  and 
ever. 

For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  a  Psalm  of  the  sons  of  Korah  ;  set  to      46 
Alamotli,     A  Song. 

God  is  our  refuge  and  strength,  r 

A  very  present  help  in  trouble. 

Some  difficulty  may  perhaps  be  experienced  in  these  closing 
verses  and  in  other  parts  of  the  Psalm,  because  the  words  used 
seem  more  appropriate  in  reference  to  God  rather  than  to  man. 
The  solution  is  not  to  be  found  by  making  the  Psalm  wholly 
allegorical  or  mystical,  nor  by  intermingling,  which  means  con- 
fusing, the  literal  and  spiritual  methods  of  interpretation,  but  by 
steadfastly  holding  to  the  literal  and  historical  throughout,  with 
the  understanding  that  the  king  here  addressed  is  viewed  not  so 
much  in  his  personal  and  individual  character,  but  the  head  of 
a  theocracy  and  in  theory  at  least  a  representative  of  God  upon 
the  earth.  This  facilitates  the  Messianic  application  of  the  words, 
without  introducing  the  numerous  difficulties  raised  by  a  directly 
Messianic  interpretation  and  an  allegorization  in  detail.  On  the 
whole  subject,  see  Introd.  to  vol.  ii. 

Psalm  XLVI.     The  Nation^s  Stronghold. 

This  and  the  two  following  Psalms  may  be  assigned  with  con-  \ 
siderable  confidence  to  the  time  of  Hezekiah,  when  Jerusalem  was  j 
so  seriously  threatened  by  the  army  of  Sennacherib  and  so  \ 
wonderfully  delivered,  according  to  Isaiah's  prophecy,  by  a  striking 
Divine  intervention.  The  arguments  in  favour  of  this  date  are 
such  as  these,  (i)  The  language  points  more  definitely  than  is 
usual  with  the  Psalmists  to  an  historical  event  of  a  notable  cha- 
racter. (2)  Unquestionably  the  event  which  most  fully  corresponds 
to  the  phraseology  emploj^ed  is  the  occasipn  mentioned.  There 
is  indeed  little  choice.  The  view  of^^^elitzsch  that  the  victor}'  of 
Berachah  gained  over  Moab,  Ammon  "^and  Edom  (2  Chron.  xx) 
is  referred  to,  is  the  best  alternative,  but  it  is  open  to  the  objection 
that  in  these  Psalms  the  city  of  Jerusalem  itself  is  the  centre  both 
of  the  danger  and  the  triumph.  The  invasion  of  Judah  by  Sj'ria 
and  Israel  in  the  time  of  Ahaz  (Isa.  vii),  which  has  also  been 
suggested,  is  improbable  on  several  grounds.  (3)  The  close  cor- 
respondence between  these  Psalms  and  the  language  of  Isaiah  (chs. 
xxx,x.\xvii,  &c.)  both  in  general  tone  and  to  some  extent  in  detailed 
phraseology.  It  may  be  added  (4)  that  the  consensus  of  critical 
opinion  is  in  this  case  more  united  than  usual  ;  though  it  is 
admitted  that  no  more  than  strong  probability  can  be  shown,  and 


240  THE   PSALMS  46.  2,  3 

2  Therefore  will  we  not  fear,  though  the  earth  do  change, 
And  though  the  mountains  be  moved  in  the  heart  of  the 

seas; 

3  Though  the  waters  thereof  roar  and  be  troubled, 
Though  the  mountains  shake  with  the  swelling  thereof. 

[Selah 

some  critics  steadfastly  refuse  to  admit  that  any  Psalms  are  pre- 
Exilic. 
'  The  keynote  of  this  Psalm  is  struck  in  the  opening  verse — '  God 
i  is  our  stronghold.'  It  is  repeated  in  the  refrain  which  occurs  in 
I  verses  7  and  11.  The  structure  of  the  Psalm  would  lead  us  to 
expect  the  refrain  at  the  end  of  verse  3  also,  the  thrice  repeated 
Selah  marking  out  the  several  stanzas.  The  first  of  these  stanzas, 
verses  1-3,  is  general  in  its  assertion  that  God  is  the  refuge  of  His 
people  ;  the  second,  verses  4-7,'  refers  to  the  recent  deliverance  ; 
while  the  third,  8-1 1,  becomes  general  again  and  anticipates  the 
vindication  of  Jehovah  as  the  God  of  the  whole  earth.  The 
phrase  in  the  title,  set  to  Alamotli,  probably  corresponds  to  our 
*  soprano.'  This  may  mean  mat  it  was  intended  for  women's 
voices,  but  more  probably  refers  to  the  instruments  used  ;  see 
I  Chron.  xv.  20,  '  with  psalteries  set  to  Alamoth.'  We  might 
perhaps  compare  the  modern  viola,  violoncello,  double  bass,  as 
illustrations  of  stringed  instruments  of  different  tone  and  quality. 

Luther's  fondness  for  this  Psalm  is  well  known  ;  in  the  sixteenth 
century  his  spirited  version  Einefesie  Burg  ist  miser  Gott  brought 
home  the  ancient  truth  to  modern  times.  Wesley's  dying  words, 
'  The  best  of  all  is,  God  is  with  us,'  were  indirectly  inspired  by 
the  language  of  the  refrain,  verses  7  and  11. 

1.  The  two  words  used  in  the  first  line  mean  respectively 
'  shelter '  (see  Job  xxiv.  8)  and  '  stability '  (Job  xii.  16  ;  Ps.  xxx.  7). 
The  idea  is  well  brought  out  by  Isaiah  in  chs.  xxviii  and  xxx, 
where  he  urges  the  people  not  to  trust  in  alliance  with  Egypt  or 
any  other  nation,  but  to  find  their  stronghold  in  Jehovah. 

No  better  English  translation  of  the  second  line  could  be  adopted 
than  that  of  R.  V.,  but  the  words  run  literally,  '  A  help  in  straits 
is  he  found  exceedingly,'  and  the  conjugation  and  tense  of  the 
word  used  for  '  found '  point  to  an  actual  occurrence  in  history  in 
which  God  has  shown  Himself  to  be  what  the  word  describes. 

2,  3.  These  verses  as  they  stand  must  be  read  together.  In 
verse  a  render  *  moved  into  the  heart  of  the  seas.*  If,  as  is 
probable,  the  refrain  originally  appeared  at  the  end  of  verse  3,  as 
in  7  and  11,  we  should  read  in  3,  '  Let  its  waters  roar  and  foam  ; 
let  the  mountains  quake  with  their  proud  swelling  I  Still  we 
fear  not,  for  God  is  with  us.' 


THE   PSALMS  .4(3.  4-7  241 

There  is  a  river,  the  streams  whereof  make  glad  the  city  4 

of  God, 
The  holy  place  of  the  tabernacles  of  the  Most  High. 
God  is  in  the  midst  of  her ;  she  shall  not  be  moved  :         5 
God  shall  help  her,  and  that  right  early. 
The  nations  raged,  the  kingdoms  were  moved  :  6 

He  uttered  his  voice,  the  earth  melted. 
The  Lord  of  hosts  is  with  us ;  7 


The  confidence  here  expressed  has  been  engendered  by  the 
recent  Divine  manifestation.  It  needs  a  prophet's  faith  and 
insight  to  be  thus  confident  before  help  had  been  vouchsafed  and 
when  ruin  seemed  imminent.  The  philosopher  pictures  the  just 
man  as  impregnable  in  himself,  wrapping  himself  in  his  own 
virtue  (see  the  well-known  passage  in  Horace,  Odes^  iii.  3.  7)  ; 
the  saint  finds  his  strength  in  God. 

4.  Twice  in  the  Book  of  Isaiah  is  the  presence  of  Jehovah 
compared  to  a  river ;  in  viii.  6,  where  '  Siloah's  brook '  is  con- 
trasted with  the  great  river  of  Assyria  ;  and  in  xxxiii.  21,  where 
'Jehovah  is  with  us  in  majesty,  a  place  of  broad  rivers  and 
streams.'  The  Psalmist's  use  of  the  figure  differs  slightly  from 
both.  But  the  idea  is  fundamentally  the  same  :  God's  presence  is 
the  joy  and  refreshment,  as  well  as  the  defence  of  His  people. 
In  construction  this  verse  is  an  exclamation — '  A  river !  its 
channels  make  glad,'  &c.,  the  next  verse  giving  the  explanation. 
In  N.  T.  phraseology  the  stream  is  that  of 'grace.' 

5.  R.  V.  preserves  in  its  text  the  old  idiomatic  rendering,  and 
tliat  right  early.  But  its  marginal  rendering  '  at  the  dawn  of 
morning,'  or  'when  the  morn  appeareth,'  gives  the  meaning  of 
the  Hebrew  better  and  suggests  the  morning  of  deliverance 
mentioned  in  Isa.  xxxvii.  36.  It  also  preserves  the  parallel  with 
such  passages  as  Pss.  xxx.  5,  cxxx.  6,  &c. 

6.  The  effect  of  what  has  been  called  the  *  staccato '  movement 
in  this  verse  is  heightened  if  we  read,  nations  rag-ed,  kingdoms 
were  moved,  &c.  There  is  no  article  in  the  original.  The  voice 
is  that  of  thunder,  the  *  melting '  is  the  dissolution  of  all  opposition 
in  abject  fear. 

7.  For  the  full  meaning  of  the  phrase  Yahweh  Tsebdoth,  Jehoyah 
of  hosts,  see  detached  note,  p.  359.  It  is  found  more  than  120 
times  in  Isaiah  and  Jeremiah,  and  several  times  in  the  Psalms  of 
the  second  and  third  Books.  Whatever  the  origin  and  history 
of  the  expression,  its  general  significance  points,  as  the  LXX 
translation  indicates,  to  God  All-Sovereign,  whilst  the  God  of 


242  THE   PSALMS  46.  8—47.  i 

The  God  of  Jacob  is  our  refuge.  [Sclah 

S  Come,  behold  the  works  of  the  Lord, 
AVhat  desolations  he  hath  made  in  the  earth. 

9  He  maketh  wars  to  cease  unto  the  end  of  the  earth  ; 
He  breaketh  the  bow,  and  cutteth  the  spear  in  sunder ; 
He  burneth  the  chariots  in  the  fire. 

10  Be  still,  and  know  that  I  am  God : 

I  will  be  exalted  among  the  nations,  I  will  be  exalted  in 
the  earth. 

1 1  The  Lord  of  hosts  is  with  us ; 

The  God  of  Jacob  is  our  refuge.  [Selah 

47  For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  a  Psalm  of  the  sons  of  Korah. 

1  O  clap  your  hands,  all  ye  peoples ; 

Jacob   is  the   God   of  the   nation.     For  with  us   compare  the 
name  Immanuel,  'God  is  with  us,'  in  Isa.  vii.  14,  viii.  8,  10. 

The  word  for  refuge  is  not  the  same  as  in  verse  i,  it  means 
'high  tower,'  R.V.  marg.,  or  high  fortress. 

8.  The  Psalmist  assumes  from  time  to  time  the  position  of  a 
teacher;  compare  xxxiv.  11,  'Come,  ye  children,  hearken  unto 
me,*  «&c.  The  invitation  here  is  chiefly  intended  for  the  nations 
around.  The  second  line  of  this  verse  rather  means,  '  Who  hath 
done  astonishing  things  in  the  earth.'  It  is  not  the  destructive 
element  in  God's  intervention  on  which  the  Psalmist  lays  stress. 

9.  He  pictures  rather  the  overthrow  of  the  great  mihtary  power 
of  Assyria  before  the  comparatively  unwarlike  people  of  Judah 
as  a  victory  of  peace  ;  muc^  as  in  the  early  part  of  the  nineteenth 
century  the  overthrow  of  Napoleon  was  regarded. 

The  word  translated  chariots  is  not  the  usual  one  for  war- 
chariot.  It  means  rather  '  waggons '  as  in  Gen.  xlv.  19  ;  some 
versions  read  *  shields.'  But  i  Sam.  xvii.  20  shows  that  these 
vehicles,  whether  they  corresponded  to  what  we  call  baggage- 
waggons  or  not,  were  associated  with  war.  '    •■    " 

10.  11.  Be  still,  or  '  Desist,'  cease  your  vain  strivings  :  R.  V. 
marg.  '  Let  be.*  The  God  of  Jacob  is  the  God  of  the  whole  earth, 
He  means  to  show  Himself  as  such,  and  the  nations  must  learn 
that  they  are  but  mortal  men.     Ps.  ix.  20. 

Psalm  XL VI I.     The  King  of  Nations. 
This  Psalm  should  be  read  in  connexion  with  xlvi  and  xlviii, 
and   it   may  be  both   compared  and  contrasted   with    them.     It 


THE    PSALMS  47.  2-5  243 

Shout  unto  God  with  the  voice  of  triumph. 

For  the  Lord  Most  High  is  terrible ;  3 

He  is  a  great  King  over  all  the  earth. 

He  shall  subdue  the  peoples  under  us,  3 

And  the  nations  under  our  feet. 

He  shall  choose  our  inheritance  for  us,  4 

The  excellency  of  Jacob  whom  he  loved.  [Selah 

God  is  gone  up  with  a  shout,  5 

exhibits  the  same  exultation  and  traces  it  to  the  same  source. 
But  it  is  less  definitely  historical,  and  dwells  upon  what  may  be 
called  the  Divine  side  of  the  event  celebrated.  The  theme  is — 
God  is  King,  let  Israel  and  all  nations  triumph  in  His  victorious 
supremacy.  It  is  used  by  the  Jews  at  the  Feast  of  Trumpets 
(Num.  xxix.  i),  and  by  the  Christian  Church  on  Ascension  Day. 
It  may  be  divided  into  two  stanzas  or  strophes,  1-4  and  5-9,  but 
this  short  and  vigorous  lyric  is  itself  but  one  trumpet-blast,  with 
many  ringing,  melodious  notes. 

1.  When  Saul  was  appointed  king,  he  was  greeted  with  shouting 
and  the  cry  'Let  the  king  live  !'  (i  Sam.  x.  24).  When  Joash  came 
to  the  crown,  the  same  cry  was  made  and  '  all  the  people  clapped 
their  hands,'  2  Kings  xi.  12.  The  two  kinds  of  demonstration  are 
here  united  to  celebrate  Jehovah  as  God  of  the  nations.  The  ren- 
dering should,  of  course,  be  peoples  (R.  V.),  not  '  people'  (A.  V.). 

2.  Yahweh  "Elyon,  the  IiOBD  Most  High,  unites  two  names 
of  God,  the  former  indicating  the  covenant  God  of  Israel,  the 
latter  the  sovereign  of  the  whole  earth. 

3.  4.  Four  various  renderings  are  possible  of  the  tenses  in  these 
verses,  and  all  have  found  supporters.  We  might  render  'He 
subdued,'  '  He  hath  subdued,'  '  He  subdueth,'  or  *  He  shall  subdue,' 
the  peoples  under  us  ;  while  some  able  critics  render  the  tense 
in  verse  4  by  the  optative,  '  May  he  choose  ! '  Without  discussing 
the  matter  in  detail,  there  are  good  reasons  for  preferring  the 
translation  of  R.  V.  raarg.,  'He  subdueth — chooseth — loveth'; 
understanding  that  a  general  truth  is  intended,  with  spxecial  refer- 
ence to  the  recent  deliverance  and  its  illustration  of  the  broad 
principle  of  God's  care  for  His  people.  The  least  satisfactory 
view  is  that  which  makes  the  passage  refer  to  the  original  settle- 
ment in  Canaan. 

The  land  is  the  inlieritauce  of  Israel,  inasmuch  as  he  is  God's 
son  and  heir,  and  the  excellency,  or  *  pride,'  of  Jacob,  since  he 
boasts  of  it  and  exults  in  it  as  God's  gracious  gift. 

6.  The  anthropomorphism  which  represents  God  as  'going  up' 

R    2 


244  THE  PSALMS  47.  6-9 

The  Lord  with  the  sound  of  a  trumpet. 

6  Sing  praises  to  God,  sing  praises  : 

Sing  praises  unto  our  King,  sing  praises. 

7  For  God  is  the  King  of  all  the  earth : 
Sing  ye  praises  with  understanding. 

8  God  reigneth  over  the  nations : 
God  sitteth  upon  his  holy  throne. 

9  The  princes  of  the  peoples  are  gathered  together 
To  be  the  people  of  the  God  of  Abraham  : 

For  the  shields  of  the  earth  belong  unto  God ; 
He  is  greatly  exalted. 

or  *  coming  down '  in  relation  to  the  affairs  of  men  is  drawn  from 
the  idea  of  an  earthly  sovereign  who  may  be  said  to  come  down 
as  from  his  throne  to  investigate  and  intervene  (Gen.  xi.  5,  7), 
to  administer  justice  among  his  subjects  or  to  overthrow  his  enemies 
(Isa.  Ixiv.  I,  3)  ;  and  who,  when  battle  is  over  and  victory  won, 
returns  to  his  palace  in  triumph.  The  ascension  into  heaven  is 
naturally  suggested  by  the  phrase  of  this  verse,  see  Ixviii.  i8. 

6,  7.  The  word  here  repeated  four  times  and  translated  Sing 
praises  refers  to  instrumental  rather  than  vocal  music,  or  at 
least  implies  that  the  singing  is  accompanied.  An  alternative 
rendering  would  be,  '  Make  ye  melody.'  R.  V.  marg.,  *  in  a  skilful 
psalm,'  is  better  than  the  text  with  nnderstanding.  The  note 
shows  that  the  word  '  Maschil '  is  that  found  in  the  title  of  Ps.  xlv 
and  many  other  Psalms. 

8.  Render,  'God  hath  become  King — hath  taken  His  seat' — 
since  here  a  fact  rather  than  a  general  truth  is  intended,  recent 
history  having  proved  that  Jehovah  has  asserted  His  right  and 
vindicated  His  claim  to  the  homage  of  the  nations. 

9.  A  verse  of  double  length  brings  the  Psalm  to  a  close  with 
a  noble  and  inspiring  prophecy.  It  pictures  a  great  gathering  of 
the  nations  with  their  leaders  at  their  head,  to  render  homage  to 
the  God  of  Israel.  The  rendering  of  R.  V.,  To  be  tbe  people  of 
the  God  of  Abraham,  is  the  only  possible  one,  if  the  received 
text  be  retained,  the  marginal  rendering,  '  Unto  the  people,'  im- 
plying a  strained  construction.  It  is  more  likely  that  the  LXX 
and  other  versions  are  right,  that  a  preposition  has  dropped  out 
and  that  we  should  read,  'Together  with  the  people  of  the  God 
of  Abraham.' 

shields  means  princes,  see  Ps.  Ixxxix.   18,  where  *  shield ' 
and  'king'  are  used  synonymously..   By  a  fine  artistic  touch  the 


THE   PSALMS  48.  i,  2  245 

A  Song  ;  a  Psalm  of  the  sons  of  Korah.  48 

Great  is  the  Lord,  and  highly  to  be  praised,  r 

In  the  city  of  our  God,  in  his  holy  mountain. 
Beautiful  in  elevation,  the  joy  of  the  whole  earth,  2 

Is  mount  Zion,  071  the  sides  of  the  north,      ..'  '  ^^ '' 

lyric  closes  upon  the  lofty  key-note,  <  Very  highly  is  He  become 
exalted!' 

Psalm  XLVIII.    The  Nation's  Security. 

In  the  trilogy  of  Psalms,  xlvi  and  xlviii  are  companions,  with 
the  shorter  and  more  general  Ps.  xlvii  interposed  between  them. 
The  language  of  this  Psalm  points  even  more  emphatically  to  the 
overthrow  of  Sennacherib's  army  as  the  occasion  of  all  three. 
One  or  two  slight  difficulties  in  the  way  of  this  reference  are 
dealt  with  in  the  notes.  The  Psalm  is  divided  into  two  parts  by 
the  '  Selah '  at  the  end  of  verse  8  :  the  former  part  describing  the 
deliverance  effected,  and  the  latter  the  reflections  and  lessons 
suggested.  It  is  used  on  Whit  Sunday  in  a  large  part  of  the  Church 
Catholic,  being  understood  as  describing  the  glory  of  the  Church 
founded  at  Pentecost  and  the  secret  of  its  strength  and  beaut}-. 

1.  The  opening  verse  shows  that  not  so  much  the  glory  of  the 
Church-nation  is  celebrated,  as  the  glory  of  the  God  from  whom 
her  whole  glory  is  reflected. 

hig-lily :  rather,  '  Exceeding  worthy  to  be  praised.' 
his  holy  mountain  had  come  to  be  almost  synonymous  with 
the  city  which  was  situated  upon  it. 

2.  Jerusalem,  Florence,  Athens,  Rome — each  has  its  own 
characteristic  loveliness,  but  the  first  is  still  unsurpassed  among 
earth's  fair  cities.  It  is  here  described  as  *  Raised  aloft  in  beautj'.' 
Stanley's  description,  in  his  Sinai  and  Palestine,  ch.  iii,  of  the 
♦  mountain  city,  breathing  a  mountain  air  and  enthroned  on 
a  mountain  fastness,'  is  well  known  and  often  quoted.  With  this 
should  be  compared  Dr.  G.  A.  Smith's  remarks  on  its  possessing 
'  none  of  the  natural  conditions  of  a  great  city '  {Hist.  Geog.  Holy 
Land,  p.  319). 

on  the  Bides  of  the  north :  a  difficult  phrase.  Many  modern 
commentators  would  interpret  in  the  light  of  Isa.  xiv.  13,  where 
'  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  north '  indicates  the  sacred  mountain 
in  the  extreme  north  which  in  Assyrian  mythology  was  the 
abode  of  the  gods,  like  the  Greek  Olympus.  But  such  a  reference 
is  quite  out  of  place  here.  Cheyne  regards  the  words  as  a  gloss 
which  crept  in  through  a  scribe's  regarding  the  phrase  in  Isaiah 
as  a  parallel  passage  ;  but  this  is  to  cut  a  knot  which  it  is  hard  to 
untie.     Taking  the  words  as  they  stand,  the  region  Beantlfal  in 


246  THE   PSALMS  48.  3-7 

The  city  of  the  great  King. 

3  God  hath  made  himself  known  in  her  palaces  for  a  refuge. 

4  For,  lo,  the  kings  assembled  themselves, 
They  passed  by  together. 

5  They  saw  it,  then  were  they  amazed ; 
They  were  dismayed,  they  hasted  away. 

6  Trembling  took  hold  of  them  there ; 
Pain,  as  of  a  woman  in  travail. 

7  With  the  east  wind 

Thou  breakest  the  ships  of  Tarshish.  ^^ 

elevation,  the  joy  of  the  whole  earth  is  either  described  in  three 
clauses — (i)  Mount  Zion.  city  of  David;  (2)  the  sides  of  the  north, 
viz.  Mount  Moriah  and  the  temple  ;  and  (3)  the  city  of  the  great 
King,  Jerusalem  proper ;  or  better,  as  Delitzsch  suggests,  in  two 
clauses — (i)  Zion,  the  temple-hill  at  the  north-east  corner, 
mentioned  by  itself,  with  (2)  Jerusalem,  the  city  proper,  lying  as 
if  at  its  feet. 

3.  Render,  '  for  a  high  fortress,'  as  in  xlvi.  7. 

4-7.  These  verses  point  to  a  definite,  sudden  and  remarkable 
deliverance.  The  chief  difficulty  in  referring  them  to  the  Assyrian 
invasion  is  the  mention  of  kings  in  verse  4.  but  it  is  not  unduly 
straining  the  phrase  to  apply  it  to  the  vassal-kings  of  Sennacherib. 
He  is  represented  in  Isa.  x.  8  as  saying,  '  Are  not  my  princes  all 
of  them  kings?'  Delitzsch's  reference  to  the  confederate  forces 
at  Beracah  (2  Chron.  xx)  fails  in  appropriateness,  inasmuch  as  the 
attack  of  Moab  and  Ammon  was  not  directly  against  Jerusalem. 

4.  They  passed  by  together  :  i.  e.  over  the  frontier,  from  stage 
to  stage  of  the  hostile  expedition,  as  described  in  Isa.  x.  28-32. 

5.  They  saw.  The  city  is  not  mentioned,  but  is  obviously  in- 
tended. There  was  nothing  to  correspond  with  this  in  the  Moabite 
invasion.  Caesar  came,  saw,  conquered  ;  Rabshakeh  saw,  was 
amazed,  fled  away. 

6.  *7.  Two  striking  figures  are  employed  lo  describe  the  panic 
and  overthrow — the  anguish  of  a  woman  in  travail,  and  a  storm 
shattering  the  strongest  vessels.  Tarshish  stands,  in  the  uncertain 
geography  of  the  time,  for  a  maritime  country  in  the  extreme  west 
(Tartessos  in  south-west  Spain  ?)  :  but  the  phrase  ships  of 
Tarshish  here  and  Isa.  ii.  16  is  used  to  describe  large  vessels 
generally  ;  compare  our  '  East  Indiaman.' 

With  the  east  wind.  '  The  day  of  the  east  wind '  (Isa. 
xxvii.  8)  is  a  proverbial  expression  for  the  most  formidable  kind  of 
tempest. 


THE   PSALMS  48.  8-i.^  247 

As  we  have  heard,  so  have  we  seen  8 

In  the  city  of  the  Lord  of  hosts,  in  the  city  of  our  God : 

God  will  establish  it  for  ever.  [Selah 

We  have  thought  on  thy  lovingkindness,  O  God,  9 

In  the  midst  of  thy  temple. 

As  is  thy  name,  O  God,  ic 

So  is  thy  praise  unto  the  ends  of  the  earth : 

Thy  right  hand  is  full  of  righteousness. 

Let  mount  Zion  be  glad,  i: 

Let  the  daughters  of  Judah  rejoice, 

Because  of  thy  judgements. 

Walk  about  Zion,  and  go  round  about  her:  i; 

Tell  the  towers  thereof. 

Mark  ye  well  her  bulwarks,  i; 

Consider  her  palaces  ; 

That  ye  may  tell  it  to  the  generation  following. 

8.  As  it  has  been  in  the  past,  so  we  have  experienced  it  in  the 
present,  and  therefore  we  hope  for  the  future.  Zion's  God  is  still 
our  own. 

9.  The  word  translated  thongrht  means  originally  *  to  compare,* 
'  to  liken,'  hence  it  stands  for  the  brooding  contemplation  which 
studies  all  the  aspects  of  a  subject  and  prepares  the  way  for  resolu- 
tion and  action.     The  sanctuary  is  the  place  for  such  pondering. 

10.  God  has,  so  to  speak,  vindicated  His  reputation ;  the 
nations  now  may  learn  what  Israel  has  long  known  concerning 
their  righteous  Ruler. 

11.  The  Psalmist  next  turns  to  Judah,  who  haschieflj'  benefited. 
Mount  Zion  is  the  capital,  dangbters  of  Judah  the  surrounding 
villages.  Judgfements  means  acts  of  righteous  interposition  such 
as  that  which  overtook  the  army  of  the  haughty  invader. 

12.  The  lately  besieged  inhabitants  especially  are  to  learn 
their  lesson.  Tell,  i.e.  'count,'  not  as  the  enemy  had  done  in 
derision  of  the  city's  feeble  defences  (Isa.  xxxiii.  i8),  but  with  the 
pride  of  those  who  know  that  their  real  strength  is  in  the  presence 
of  Jehovah. 

13.  Consider:  I.  e.  the  lesson  to  be  learned  from  the  fact  that 
after  such  an  attack  these  palaces  and  bulwarks  still  stand  intact. 
Compare  Isa.  xxxvii.  33,  *  He  shall  not  come  unto  this  cit}', . . .  nor 
cast  a  mount  against  it,'  &c.  The  story  is  to  be  told  to  children's 
children  as  a  proof  of  the  statement  with  which  the  Psalm  closes. 


248  THE   PSALMS  48.  14— 49.  i 

14  For  this  God  is  our  God  for  ever  and  ever  : 
He  will  be  our  guide  even  unto  death. 

49  For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  a  Psalm  of  the  sons  of  Korah. 

I  Hear  this,  all  ye  peoples ; 

14.  There  is  no  doubt  about  the  general  meaning  of  this 
beautiful  verse.  But  the  Hebrew  will  not  bear  the  translation 
unto  death,  nor  is  this  the  phrase  we  should  expect  here.  Many 
conjectures  have  been  made,  but  if  the  present  text  is  to  be 
retained,  the  most  probable  rendering  is : — 

*  For  such  is  God,  even  our  God  : 
He  will  guide  us  for  evermore.     Al-muthJ* 

The  last  word  causes  the  difficulty,  and  it  may  refer  to  a  tune  as 
in  the  title  of  Ps.  ix,  Al-imtth-labbat :  or  with  a  different  vocaliza- 
tion, set  to  Alamoth,  as  in  Ps.  xlvi.  If  the  latter  explanation  is 
accepted,  the  word  belongs  to  the  title  of  the  next  Psalm.  The 
almost  endless  variations  in  the  versions  and  the  commentators 
testify  to  a  difficulty  which  cannot  now  be  entirely  removed,  but 
no  change  of  rendering  seriously  affects  the  meaning. 

Psalm  XLIX.     The  Vanity  of  Earthly  Prosperity. 

As  the  interest  of  the  three  preceding  Psalms  was  historical 
and  national,  so  the  importance  of  this  is  entirely  abstract  and 
moral.  It  is  confessedly,  emphatically  didactic.  A  problem  of 
life  is  exercising  the  Psalmist  which  others  faced  in  their  own 
fashion,  as  in  Pss.  xxxvii  and  Ixxiii.  None  of  the  philosophers 
even  yet  have  solved  it — the  complete  harmonizing  of  the  material 
and  moral  elements  in  human  life,  the  adjustment  of  the  balance 
between  personal  character  and  outward  lot  and  condition.  It 
seemed  to  the  Psalmist,  as  to  So  man3'  others,  that  earthly  wealth 
and  influence  rule  ;  that  the  rich  man  is  the  strong  man,  whatever 
his  character  ;  and  that  material  forces  have  the  upper  hand  in 
human  affairs.  A  second  thought  shows  him  that  the  balance  is 
redressed  by  death.  The  richest  and  strongest  must  die  ;  no 
wealth  or  influence  will  purchase  immunity  from  the  common  lot. 
Hence  *  man  that  is  in  honour '  must  learn  his  lesson,  and  those 
not  similarly  favoured  need  not  doubt  or  despair  of  the  triumph 
of  righteousness. 

Whether  the  thought  of  this  Psalmist  goes  further,  has  been 
questioned.  Whether,  that  is,  he  has  a  glimpse  of  a  state  beyond 
the  grave  in  which  the  inequalities  of  the  present  will  be 
completel3'  removed,  whether  we  are  to  take  into  account  not 
only  death  but  that  which  comes  after  death.     The  answer  given 


THE   PSALMS  49.  2,  3  549 

Give  ear,  all  ye  inhabitants  of  the  world  : 

Both  low  and  high,  2 

Rich  and  poor  together. 

My  mouth  shall  speak  wisdom ;  3 

And  the  meditation  of  my  heart  shall  be  of  understanding. 


by  different  interpreters  varies.  The  fact  that  there  is  such 
a  difference  proves  that  the  glimpse  of  a  future  state,  if  gained  at 
all,  can  have  been  only  a  passing  one,  and  the  language  in  which  it 
is  expressed  must  be  vague  and  ambiguous.  So  we  shall  find  it 
in  expounding  the  verses  in  detail ;  and  therefore,  while  not 
excluding  the  possibility  of  the  Psalmist's  hope  on  a  point  con- 
cerning which  there  had  been  no  express  revelation,  it  is  clear 
that  little  can  be  built  upon  phraseology,  the  exact  meaning  of 
which  is  still  debated. 

The  Psalm  itself  gives  no  clue  as  to  its  date,  except  that  verses  3 
and  4  would  point  to  a  period — say  about  the  time  of  Hezekiah  — 
when  teachers  known  as  '  the  wise,'  or  gnomic  moralists  who 
uttered  ethical  maxims  on  the  conduct  of  life,  taught  and 
flourished.  The  parallel  passages  in  Job  and  Provigl*bs  probably 
point  in  the  same  direction. 

After  an  introduction,  longer  and  more  formal  than  usual, 
verses  1-4,  the  Psalm  divides  itself  into  two  parts,  each  ending 
with  the  same  words,  verses  12  and  20.  The  same  thesis  is 
propounded  in  both — that  wealth  cannot  save  from  death,  but  the 
earlier  half  of  the  Psalm  deals  more  fully  with  the  present  life 
and  the  second  with  the  power  of  Sheol.  The  style  of  the 
Psalm  is  fresh  and  vigorous,  and  the  treatment  of  the  subject, 
within  the  limits  laid  down,  powerful  and  impressive. 

1,  2.  The  point  of  view  of  the  Psalmist  is  universal.  He 
addresses  not  Jews,  but  the  nations  at  large.  The  'wisdom- 
literature  '  of  the  O.  T.  is  characterized  by  this  wider  outlook  upon 
the  world  and  life,  and  the  topics  discussed  in  this  Psalm  concern 
not  Judaism  only,  but  humanity. 

The  second  line  might  be  rendered  'All  ye  that  dwell  in  this 
fleeting  world.'  Lessons  are  to  be  announced  which  concern  the 
children  of  mankind  as  a  whole  and  the  sons  of  (eminent)  men  in 
particular.  So  we  might  vainly  try  to  paraphrase  the  Hebrew, 
in  which  two  words  for  '  man '  are  used,  excellently  paraphrased 
in  low  and  Iiigrli,  i.  e.  low-born  and  high-born,  together. 

3,  4.  Four  words  here  used  are  characteristic  of  the  '  wisdom- 
literature.'  Wisdom  and  understanding  have  the  special  meaning 
which  attaches  to  the  proverbial  philosophy  characteristic  of  the 
wise  ;   see  especially   Prov.   i-ix,   a  passage  of  later  date  than 


250  THE   PSALMS  49.  4-8 

4  I  will  incline  mine  ear  to  a  parable : 

I  will  open  my  dark  saying  upon  the  harp. 

5  Wherefore  should  I  fear  in  the  days  of  evil, 
When  iniquity  at  my  heels  compasseth  me  about  ? 

6  They  that  trust  in  their  wealth, 

And  boast  themselves  in  the  multitude  of  their  riches ; 

7  None  of  them  can  by  any  means  redeem  his  brother, 
Nor  give  to  God  a  ransom  for  him : 

8  (For  the  redemption  of  their  soul  is  costly, 
And  must  be  let  alone  for  ever :) 

some  other  parts  of  the  book.  The  words  translated  parable  and 
dark  saying'  (or,  'riddle')  are  often  joined  together,  as  in 
Ps.  Ixxviii.  2  ;  Prov.  i.  6  ;  they  refer  to  the  form  in  which  the 
instruction  of  wisdom  was  conveyed.  The  terms  '  proverb '  and 
'  aphorism '  would  convey  the  meaning  to  modern  ears. 

5.  Wlierefore  should  I  fear?  &c.  The  Psalmist  had  evidently 
himself  been  tempted  to  fear  in  days  when  evil  men  had  the 
mastery  over  him.  Such  temptation,  always  strong,  is  of  course 
indefinitely  stronger  in  countries  where  arbitrary  power  prevails 
and  there  is  no  even-handed  administration  of  justice  such  as  is 
taken  for  granted  in  modern  civilized  Western  States. 

In  the  second  line,  R.V.  text  and  margin  lead  to  the  same 
point,  though  in  the  text  the  emphasis  lies  upon  evil,  in  the 
margin  upon  evil  men,  as  dogging  the  Psalmist's  steps  and  seeking 
to  trip  him  up  and  overthrow  him. 

6, 7.  The  temptation  is  met  by  the  thought  of  the  strict 
limitations  of  the  power  of  wealth.  One  thing  the  rich  man 
cannot  do,  redeem  any  f|-iend — a  suggested  and  not  improbable 
emendation  would  give  'redeem  himself — from  the  power  of 
death.      '  Death  lays  his  icy  hand  on  kings.' 

Money  cannot  purchase  the  boon  of  life.  Under  the  Mosaic 
law,  a  man  whose  ox  had  gored  a  neighbour  to  death  was  liable 
to  lose  his  life,  but  he  might  save  himself  by  paying  a  fine  or 
ransom,  Exod.  xxi.  28-32.  But  a  murderer  might  not  thus 
purchase  immunity  from  punishment,  Num.  xxxv.  31.  In  this  case 
no  brother,  i.  e,  friend,  however  dear,  can  be  saved  from  death  by 
the  wealthy  man  ;  still  less,  of  course,  can  he  save  himself. 

8.  The  A.  V.  rendering,  •  And  it  ceaseth  for  ever,'  is  distinctly 
inferior  to  the  older  P.  B.  V.,  '  so  that  he  must  let  that  alone  for 
ever,'  revived  in  more  accurate  form  in  R.  V. 

soul  means  'life,'  and  to  avoid  ambiguity,  the  latter  word 
is  to  be  preferred  in  the  text. 


THE   PSALMS  49.  9-ia  251 

That  he  should  still  live  alway,  9 

That  he  should  not  see  corruption. 

For  he  seeth  that  wise  men  die,  10 

The  fool  and  the  brutish  together  perish, 

And  leave  their  wealth  to  others. 

Their  inward  thought  is,  that  their  houses  shall  continue  1 1 

for  ever, 
A7id  their  dwelling  places  to  all  generations ; 
They  call  their  lands  after  their  own  names. 
But  man  abideth  not  in  honour  :  13 

He  is  like  the  beasts  that  perish. 

9.  Render,  '■  That  he  should  live  on  always, 

That  he  should  not  see  the  grave,'  i.  e.  die. 

10.  The  connexion  of  thought  here  is  not  obvious  at  first. 
R.  V.  marg.  shows  that  the  translation  in  the  text  is  not  quite 
satisfactory,  but  the  alternative  presented  is  still  less  so.  The  choice 
lies  between  Por  lie  seeth,  in  the  sense  of  '  he  must  see '  ;  and 
'  Nay,  surely  he  seeth  '  or  '■  must  see.*  The  two  renderings  lead 
substantially  to  the  same  conclusion,  but  by  means  of  two  different 
interpretations,  both  legitimate,  of  the  introductory  particle. 

The  words  well  rendered  fool  and  brutish  mean  the  obstinately 
self-confident  and  the  grossly  stupid. 

11.  A  very  slight  change  in  the  order  of  letters  in  one  word 
gives  a  reading  which  is  followed  by  LXX,  Targ.,  and  all  the 
earlier  versions,  see  R.  V.  marg.,  '  Their  graves  are  their  houses 
for  ever,  their  dwelling-places,'  &c.  This  fits  better  with  the 
next  line,  the  word  '  And '  not  being  found  in  the  original ;  it 
harmonizes  better  with  the  context,  which  is  not  concerned  with 
the  '■  inward  thought '  of  these  men  ;  and  is  more  in  accord  with  the 
general  tenor  of  the  Psalm.  Some  good  authorities,  moreover, 
question  whether  inward  thought  is  a  legitimate  translation. 

The  last  line  adds  a  touch  of  irony.  These  men  who  have 
solemnly  tried  to  perpetuate  their  memory  by  giving  their  names 
to  large  estates  dwell  each  in  his  narrow  house  ;  a  body  for 
which  '  a  kingdom  was  too  small  a  bound '  finds  now  '  two  paces 
of  the  vilest  earth  is  room  enough.' 

12.  With  the  above  reading  in  verse  it,  render  here:  'And 
(so)  man  (being,  or,  however  he  be^  in  honour,  abideth  not.' 
His  end,  if  he  have  no  deeper  and  firmer  foundation  than  his 
wealth  on  which  to  rest,  is  like  that  of  the  brutes  that  pass  into 
silence. 


252  THE   PSALMS  49.  13-15 

13  This  their  way  is  their  folly : 

Yet  after  them  men  approve  their  sayings.  [Selah 

14  They  are  appointed  as  a  flock  for  Sheol ; 
Death  shall  be  their  shepherd  : 

And  the  upright  shall  have  dominion  over  them  in  the 

morning; 
And  their  beauty  shall  be  for  Sheol  to  consume,  that  there 

be  no  habitation  for  it. 

15  But  God  will  redeem  my  soul  from  the  power  of  Sheol : 
For  he  shall  receive  me.  [Selah 


13.  This  verse  apparently  belongs  in  thought  to  the  previous 
part  of  the  Psalm,  and  mucli  is  to  be  said  for  its  transposition  to 
a  place  before  the  refrain  in  verse  12.  Taking  the  text  as  it  is, 
the  meaning  seems  to  be  :  '  This  is  the  way,'  i.  e.  lot  or  condition, 
'  of  them  that  are  foolishly  self-confident,  and  of  those  who  after 
them  approve  their  sayings,'  lit.  'find  pleasure  in  their  mouth.' 
They,  and  all  who  are  like  them,  end  in  corruption. 

14.  A  striking  verse,  which  R.  V.  for  the  first  time  makes  plain 
in  English.  These  men  pass  into  Sheol  like  a  flock  of  sheep, 
Death  is  their  grim  shepherd,  their  '  form ' — not  their  beauty, 
but  all  that  appears  of  them — is  food  for  the  grave  :  it  no  longer 
needs  a  dwelling-place,  it  vanishes  into  dust. 

In  this  exposition,  however,  we  have  passed  over  the  clause, 
^In  the  morning  the  upright  shall  rule  over  them.'  A  contrast  is 
clearly  intended,  but  its  exact  scope  is  not  clear.  To  find  here 
an  allusion  to  the  resurrection-morning  would  be  an  anachronism, 
yet  on  the  earth  this  superiority  could  only  be  made  manifest  by 
some  vindication  of  the  character  of  the  righteous  in  the  dawn  of 
that  new  day  which  is  to  Illumine  the  earth.  This  appears  to  be 
the  meaning,  but  the  words  are  few  and  obscure. 

15.  The  same  uncertainty  attaches  to  the  meaning  of  this  verse. 
But  if  we  do  not  ask  questions  which  the  Psalmist  never  professed 
to  answer,  because  the  light  of  revelation  did  not  enable  him  to  do 
so,  the  positive  truth  which  he  would  express  is  plain.  God  only 
can  deal  with  the  power  of  Sheol,  He  alone  can  '  redeem '  from  it, 
in  the  sense  of  arresting  or  over-ruling  its  tyrannous  hand.  I 
leave  myself  with  Him,  He  will  take  me.  It  is  when  we  ask 
How,  Where,  When  ?  that  the  Psalmist  is  silent,  wisely  and 
necessarily  so.  Thus  the  teaching  of  this  Psalm  corresponds 
with  that  of  Ps.  xvi ;  the  writer  enjoj's  communion  with  God  and 
is  content  to  leave  all  issues  in  His  hands.     An  allusion  to  the 


THE   PSALMS  49.  16-20  ^53 

Be  not  thou  afraid  when  one  is  made  rich,  'i-^ 

AVhen  the  glory  of  his  house  is  increased  : 

For  when  he  dieth  he  shall  carry  nothing  away ;  17 

His  glory  shall  not  descend  after  him. 

Though  while  he  lived  he  blessed  his  soul,  18 

And  men  praise  thee,  when  thou  doest  well  to  thyself. 

He  shall  go  to  the  generation  of  his  fathers;  19 

They  shall  never  see  the  light. 

Man  that  is  in  honour,  and  understandeth  not,  20 

Is  like  the  beasts  that  perish. 


story  of  Enoch,  Gen.  v.  24,  may  be  intended.  On  the  other  hand, 
no  one  can  certainly  say  that  more  mttst  be  meant  than  deliverance 
from  the  peril  of  premature  and  violent  death  to  which  the  self- 
confident  wicked  were  liable. 

16r  17.  The  Psalmist  returns  to  the  'fear'  by  v^hich  he  was 
haunted,  see  verse  5.  He  has  been  delivered  himself  from  this 
spectre,  and  as  a  teacher  he  would  deliver  others.  If  death  forms 
the  term  of  the  rich  man's  wealth  and  influence,  the  oppressed 
need  not  fear  the  oppressor.  The  bubble  disappears  from  the  river, 
though  the  noise  of  the  foam  was  great. 

18.  Better,  in  the  present  tense,  *  Thouigh  in  his  life-time  he 
blcsseth  his  soul,'  i.e.  congratulates  himself,  *  counteth  himself 
happy'  (P.B.V.),  and  receives  the  congratulations  of  others,  as 
successful  men  always  do. 

19.  Of  the  three  translations  given  in  R.V.  text  and  margin,  the 
best  is  that  of  the  text,  for  «it'  refers  to  the  soul,  and  in  English 
the  meaning  is  made  clearer  by  saying  Ke.  On  the  other  hand, 
in  the  second  line  we  prefer  the  margin,  '  He  goeth  to  his  fathers, 
Who  shall  never  more  see  the  light.' 

20.  The  refrain  as  in  verse  10,  with  the  significant  addition, 
and  nnderstandetli  not.  The  reader  is  supposed  to  bear  in  mind 
throughout  the  Psalm  that  by  the  man  who  is  in  honour,  i.e. 
possessed  of  outward  splendour,  is  intended  one  who  can  boast  of 
this  and  nothing  more.  He  has  no  understanding  of,  or  insight 
into,  the  real  meaning  of  life.  But  here  this  is  for  the  first  time 
explicitly  stated. 

This  distinction  justifies  the  contrast  drawn  between  the  self- 
confident  fool  on  the  one  hand,  and  on  the  other  the  upright  as 
in  verse  14,  or  the  Psalmist  himself  as  in  verse  15.  These  latter  are 
not  freed  from  death  entirely,  for  wise  men  die.  verse  10;  but 
they  do  not  perish  as  do  others  ;  while  tlie  Psalmist  has  gained 


254  THE   PSALMS  50.  i 

50  A  Psalm  of  Asaph. 

1  God,  even  God,  the  Lord,  hath  spoken, 


a  bright  though  passing  glimpse  of  possibilities  in  the  future  for 
those  whom  God  '  redeems  '  and  '  takes.* 

Psalm  L.     True  Sacrifice  and  Worship. 

Another  didactic  Psalm  ;  dealing,  however,  with  Israel  rather 
than  the  world,  with  questions  of  ritual  and  morals  rather  than  of 
life  and  destiny.  Like  the  preceding  Psalm,  it  is  original  and 
vigorous  in  style,  but  this  is  marked  by  a  stately  sublimity  of  its 
own,  which  stamps  it  as  belonging  to  the  golden  age  of  the 
nation.  God  is  represented  as  coming  to  judgement,  arraigning 
His  people  before  Him  that  He  may  investigate  the  nature  of 
their  worship  and  service  and  set  them  in  the  right  way. 
Especially  is  the  subject  of  sacrifice  set  in  its  true  light,  as  it 
appears  in  the  searching  glance  of  the  Divine  eye.  The  sacrifice 
of  animals  is  not  condemned  nor  slighted,  but  such  sacrifices  as 
many  had  been  in  the  habit  of  offering  are  shown  to  be  utterly 
unworthy  of  Him  to  whom  they  were  presented,  and  of  the 
spiritual  worship  which  ought  to  characterize  the  true  Israel. 
The  moral  and  spiritual  significance  of  ritual,  and  the  absolute 
necessity  of  ordering  the  life  and  conduct  of  the  worshippers  in 
accordance  with  the  character  of  a  holy  God,  are  insisted  upon 
with  the  fervour  and  power  characteristic  of  the  true  prophet. 

The  Psalm  is  ascribed  to  Asaph.  The  subject  of  Asaphic 
Psalms  is  more  fully  dealt  with  in  the  Introduction  to  Book  III,  but 
here  it  may  be  said  that  the  title  does  not  in  any  sense  determine 
the  date.  Some  of  the  Psalms  which  bear  Asaph's  name  cannot 
have  been  written  by  the  musician  who  figured  in  David's  history, 
I  Chron.  xv.  16-19  '^  probably  none  of  them  were  so  written. 
The  phrase  of  Asaph  is  to  be  understood  in  the  same  way  as  '  of  the 
sons  of  Korah,'  to  indicate  a  collection  of  Psalms  bearing  a  name 
which  was  probably  that  of  a  musical  guild.  Internal  evidence 
would  mark  out  this  Psalm  as  belonging  to  the  eighth  or  the 
seventh  century  b.  c,  either  to  the  time  of  Hosea  and  Micah  or 
to  the  reformation  of  Josiah,  more  probably  the  former. 

The  Psalm  easily  divides  itself  into  four  parts  :  introduction,  1-6 ; 
the  true  nature  of  sacrifice,  7-15  ;  denunciation  of  immorality,  16- 
ai  ;  conclusion,  22,  23. 

1.  God  who  appears  in  majesty  for  judgement  is  described  here 
by  three  names,  '  El,  Elohim,  Yahweh.'  The  words  'Elyon  and 
Eloah  also  occur  in  verses  14  and  22.  The  subject  of  the  names 
of  God  is  dealt  with  in  a  detached  note,  p.  358,  and  in  the  Introduction 
to  vol.  ii.  The  three  names  here  united  are  not  often  thus  found 
together,  but  see  Joshua  xxii.  22.  The  translation  there  adopted, 
*  The  Lujcd,  the  God  of  gods/  is  advocated  by  some  in  this  verse 


THE   PSALMS  50.  2-6  255 

And  called  the  earth  from  the  rising  of  the  sun  unto  the 

going  down  thereof. 
Out  of  Zion,  the  perfection  of  beauty,  : 

God  hath  shined  forth. 

Our  God  shall  come,  and  shall  not  keep  silence  :  ; 

A  fire  shall  devour  before  him, 
And  it  shall  be  very  tempestuous  round  about  him. 
He  shall  call  to  the  heavens  above, 
And  to  the  earth,  that  he  may  judge  his  people : 
Gather  my  saints  together  unto  me ; 
Those  that  have  made  a  covenant  with  me  by  sacrifice. 
And  the  heavens  shall  declare  his  righteousness ;  ' 

(R.V.  marg.).  Following  the  text,  however,  we  have  three 
names,  of  which  two  are  easily  distinguished.  Yahweh  is  the 
God  of  special  revelation  to  Israel,  God  of  the  sacred  covenant, 
while  both  £"/and  Elohini  are  general  names  for  the  Deity  who  rules 
the  world.  The  conjunction  of  names  of  course  identifies  these 
two.  The  combination  of  sacred  titles  gives  great  dignity  to  the 
exordium,  and  the  keynote  of  the  Psalm  is  struck  at  the  outset, 
that  Israel's  God  is  indeed  the  Judge  of  the  whole  earth. 

2.  Zion  is  God's  dwelling-place,  but  the  Psalm  describes 
a  special  Epiphany,  an  unusual  raying  forth  of  his  splendour. 
Compare  '  shine  forth  '  in  another  Asaphic  Psalm,  Ixxx.  i. 

3.  The  idea  intended  is  better  conveyed  by  present  tenses, 
'our  God  Cometh,'  'a  fire  devoureth,'  &c.  (R.V.  marg.).  The 
change  of  tense  in  Hebrew  gives  a  vividness  to  the  picture,  best 
reproduced  in  English  by  the  use  of  the  historic  present.  A 
storm  attends  a  theophany,  as  in  Ps.  xviii  and  Hab.  iii. 

4.  Heaven  and  earth  are  assessors  in  this  great  assize,  as  in 
the  dramatic  apostrophe  of  Micah,  '  Let  the  hills  hear  thy  voice. 
Hear,  O  ye  mountains,  the  Lord's  controversy,'  vi.  i,  2. 

5.  It  is  only  the  elect  people  who  are  to  be  judged,  though 
earth  and  skies  are  witnesses.  Those  who  have  received  special 
privileges  must  render  special  account.  Saints  is  explained  by 
the  second  line  of  the  verse,  those  who  have  entered  into  a  special 
engagement  with  Jehovah,  as  He  with  them,  who  should  therefore 
recognize  the  special  obligations  of  this  bond  of  love. 

The  covenant  was  made  by  {liU  '  upon  ')  sacrifice,  the  sprinkling 
of  blood  sealing  the  solemn  promise  made,  '  All  that  the  Lord 
hath  spoken  will  we  do,'  Exod.  xxiv.  7. 

6.  Render,  *  And  the  heavens  declare . . .  For  God,  He  is  Judge/ 


256  THE    PSALMS  50.  7-11 

For  God  is  judge  himself.  [Selah 

7  Hear,  O  my  people,  and  I  will  speak ; 

0  Israel,  and  I  will  testify  unto  thee : 

1  am  God,  eveti  thy  God. 

8  I  wull  not  reprove  thee  for  thy  sacrifices ; 

And  thy  burnt  offerings  are  continually  before  me. 

9  I  will  take  no  bullock  out  of  thy  house, 
Nor  he-goats  out  of  thy  folds. 

10  For  every  beast  of  the  forest  is  mine, 
And  the  cattle  upon  a  thousand  hills. 

11  I  know  all  the  fowls  of  the  mountains : 

All  this  is  introductory  only,  but  the  full  painting  in  of  so  august 
a  background  is  intended  to  heighten  the  solemnity  of  the  indict- 
ment about  to  be  preferred. 

7.  The  word  '  trial '  hardly  conveys  a  true  idea  of  the  scene. 
God's  '  controversy  '  with  His  people  is  the  solemn  protest  of  One 
who  has  a  right  to  punish  disobedience  without  a  word,  but  who 
condescends  to  register  a  complaint  which  must  be  accounted 
reasonable  as  soon  as  stated.  Hence  testify  tmto  might  be 
rendered  '  witness  against  thee  ' ;  the  charge  to  be  made  only  needs 
to  be  uttered  for  its  righteousness  to  be  seen  and  recognized. 
Israel  must  acknowledge  the  claim  of  Him  who  is  not  only  God, 
but  thy  God. 

8.  No  complaint  is  made  concerning  the  due  observance  of 
ritual.  This  has  been  fully  attended  to  ;  we  need  not  say  too 
fully,  as  if  continually  implied  something  of  the  weariness  of 
multitudinous  sacrifices  described  in  Isa.  i.  n.  Still,  the  error, 
since  error  there  appears  \,o  be,  does  not  lie  in  a  failure  to  observe 
the  outward  ordinances. 

9-11.  The  fatal  deficiency  lies  in  the  failure  to  understand 
the  meaning  of  sacrifice.  With  penetrating  irony  the  prophet 
brings  home  to  the  formalist,  who  prides  himself  on  the  exactness 
of  his  ritual  performances,  the  absurdity  of  supposing  that  the 
Creator  of  heaven  and  eartli  cares  to  receive  a  few  goats  or  sheep, 
or  that  He  is  anxious  about  a  few  cattle  more  or  less,  or  would 
miss  a  meal  if  an  Israelite  failed  to  render  in  detail  some  offering 
prescribed  by  law  or  custom. 

'The  cattle  upon  the  mountains  of  a  thousand'  may  mean  the 
mountains  *  where  thousands  of  cattle  live  '  (R.  V.  marg.),  but  the 
text  probably  gives  the  idea  correctly.  The  Hebrew  construction, 
however,  is  awkward,  and  Cheyne,  following  Olshausen,  adopts 


THE   PSALMS  50.  12-16  257 

And  the  wild  beasts  of  the  field  are  mine. 

If  I  were  hungry,  I  would  not  tell  thee :  la 

For  the  world  is  mine,  and  the  fulness  thereof. 

Will  I  eat  the  flesh  of  bulls,  13 

Or  drink  the  blood  of  goats  ? 

Offer  unto  God  the  sacrifice  of  thanksgiving ;  14 

And  pay  thy  vows  unto  the  Most  High : 

And  call  upon  me  in  the  day  of  trouble ;  1 5 

I  will  deliver  thee,  and  thou  shalt  glorify  me. 

But  unto  the  wicked  God  saith,  16 

the  reading  '  mountains  of  God.'  This  is  smoother  and  less  signi- 
ficant. The  latter  part  of  verse  11  runs  literally,  'Whatever 
moveth  in  the  field  is  with  me,'  before  my  eye,  in  my  possession, 
subjects  of  my  thought,  objects  of  my  care. 

12, 13.  The  idea  that  the  god  literally  partook  of  the  meat  offered 
in  sacrifice  upon  his  altar  prevailed  in  early  Semitic  religions,  as 
in  the  lower  type  of  religions  it  prevails  still.  Israel  may  have 
been  in  danger  of  interpreting  too  literally  the  current  language 
concerning  sacrifice,  compare  Lev.  xxi.  8,  17,  &c.,  'the  bread  of 
thy  God.'  This  does  not  follow,  however,  from  the  indignant 
irony  of  these  verses.  It  is  enough  that  the  prophet  should  thus 
indicate  the  absurdity  of  the  notion  that  these  multiplied  sacrifices 
were  necessary  to  God,  as  if  in  any  sense  He  fed  upon  them  or 
would  lack  sustenance  without  them. 

14,  15.  What  God  desires  is  a  grateful  heart  and  an  obedient 
life.  A  man  who  offers  this  pure  and  spiritual  sacrifice  may  pray 
with  the  assurance  that  he  will  be  heard  and  helped. 

Did  the  Psalmist  intend  to  disparage  material  sacrifice  alto- 
gether? This  is  not  implied.  Cheyne,  in  his  note  on  this  verse, 
says  that  neither  prophets  nor  wise  men  regarded  animal  sacrifices 
'  as  ideally  good.  The  spiritual  meaning  of  the  sacrificial  system 
cannot  have  been  recognized  by  them.'  But  this  must  not  be 
considered  as  proved.  The  controversy  thus  raised,  e.  g.  over 
Jer.  vii.  22,  is  too  large  to  be  entered  on  in  a  note,  but  the 
Psalmist  at  least  does  not  set  aside  as  useless  or  evil  the  practice 
of  offering  animal  sacrifice,  while  undoubtedly,  like  Isaiah,  Hosea 
and  Micah,  he  emphasizes  the  importance  of  spiritual  worship. 

16.  The  second  part  of  the  indictment  on  which  we  now  enter 
shows  the  reason  of  the  first.  There  was  great  danger  of  what 
was  worse  than  formalism,  downright  hypocrisy.  To  substitute 
outward  ritual  for  inward  allegiance  is  bad  enough,  but  a  man 


2S8  THE   PSALMS  50.  17-21 

What  hast  thou  to  do  to  declare  my  statutes, 

And  that  thou  hast  taken  my  covenant  in  thy  mouth  ? 

1 7  Seeing  thou  hatest  instruction, 
And  castest  my  words  behind  thee. 

18  When  thou  sawest  a  thief,  thou  consentedst  with  him, 
And  hast  been  partaker  with  adulterers. 

19  Thou  givest  thy  mouth  to  evil. 
And  thy  tongue  frameth  deceit. 

30  Thou  sittest  and  speakest  against  thy  brother ; 

Thou  slanderest  thine  own  mother's  son. 
21  These  things  hast  thou  done,  and  I  kept  silence; 

Thou  thoughtest  that  I  was  altogether  such  an  one  as 

thyself : 
But  I  will  reprove  thee,  and  set  them  in  order  before  thine 
eyes. 

seldom  stops  with  this.  When  he  has  backslidden  in  heart,  it 
will  not  be  long  before  he  backslides  in  life.  Israel  had  largely 
done  so.  Whilst  rehearsing  God's  statutes  and  repeating  the 
words  of  the  covenant  which  bound  the  people  to  obedience,  many 
of  them  were  violating  some  of  the  most  fundamental  precepts  of 
morality.     This  deserves  and  receives  stern  denunciation. 

17.  A  man  has  no  right  to  take  the  solemn  words  of  precept  as 
his  professed  guide,  if  all  the  time  he  practically  gets  rid  of  them 
and  hates  the  correction  or  moral  discipline  which  is  intended 
to  train  him  to  obedience. 

.  18-20.  Theft,  adultery, ''falsehood,  even  where  close  kinship 
might  have  been  supposed  to  restrain  the  lying  tongue — these  are 
no  slight  faults.  In  the  former  two  cases,  it  is  not  the  commission 
of  crime  that  is  directly  charged,  but  pleasure  in  the  company  of 
the  dishonest  and  impure  implies  a  partaking  in  their  sins. 
Treachery  and  meanness  are  marks  of  social  degeneracy  and  dis- 
integration. No  community  can  long  hold  together  where  malice 
and  falsehood  are  eating  out  the  heart  of  friendship  and  family 
affection  ;  but  for  an  Israelite,  with  the  solemn  covenant  of  his 
nation  upon  his  lips,  thus  to  prove  himself  traitor  and  blasphemer ! 

21.  One  further  evil  had  been  committed.  Because  God  did 
not  at  once  punish  these  offences,  the  very  fount  of  religious  life 
had  become  tainted.  The  evildoer  should  have  understood  and 
profited  by  God's  forbearance,  but  instead  he  dared  to  blaspheme 


THE   PSALMS  50.  22-23  259 

Now  consider  this,  ye  that  forget  God,  22 

Lest    I    tear  you    in    pieces,   and   there   be   none   to 

deliver : 
Whoso  offereth  the  sacrifice   of  thanksgiving  glorifieth  23 

me; 
And  to  him  that  ordereth  his  conversation  aright 
Will  I  shew  the  salvation  of  God. 


God,  to  regard  Him  as  like  himself,  to  degrade  his  very  religion, 
and  imagine  that  such  a  sinner  could  still  be  a  chasid,  a  saint, 
a  man  with  his  name  in  the  covenant-grant,  while  false  to  its 
fundamental  character.  This  frightful  tendency  has  prevailed  in 
other  generations,  Eccles.  viii.  11. 

God  is  not  mocked.  At  least  by  His  servant  He  will  expose 
the  evil,  lay  bare  the  mischief,  and  set  these  gross  offences  in 
order,  i.  e.  carefully  specified  and  drawn  up  as  in  a  formal 
indictment,  before  the  eyes  of  the  offender.  If  after  this  he 
deceives  himself,  the  greater  will  be  his  condemnation. 

22.  Reformation  is  urged.  And  this  on  two  grounds  :  the  first, 
the  danger  of  severe  and  final  punishment  ;  the  second,  the 
blessedness  of  offering  acceptable  service.  Sinners  on  the  one 
hand  are  warned  that  God  will  not  always  forbear,  that  men  must 
not  presume  upon  His  *  slackness.' 

23.  On  the  other  hand,  in  a  fine  conclusion,  the  Psalmist 
declares  the  true  principles  of  religion  in  all  ages.  In  worship 
what  is  needed  is  a  thankful  heart,  and  for  the  obtaining  of 
salvation  a  faithful  and  devoted  life.  From  Samuel  to  James 
(i  Sam.  XV.  22  ;  Jas.  i.  27),  as  well  as  before  the  time  of  the  O.  T. 
prophet  and  the  N.  T.  apostle,  God's  messengers  have  taught  that 
the  ritual  with  which  He  is  well  pleased  is  the  service  of  the 
heart. 

'  Its  faith  and  hope  Thy  canticles. 
And  its  obedience  praise  ! '    , 

The  fact  that  in  the  second  line  of  this  verse  the  word  '  aright ' 
has  to  be  supplied  has  led  to  variations  of  rendering,  and  it  has 
been  proposed  to  alter  the  text  to  '  him  that  is  perfect  in  his  way.' 
But  the  simple  translation  of  simple  words  is  enough,  And  to  Mm 
that  ordereth  (or  'prepareth),  his  way,  without  specifying  how. 
It  was  the  'way,'  i.  e.  the  conduct,  the  actual  steps  taken  in  life, 
that  was  wrong,  and  no  one  who  listened  to  the  searching  words 
of  this  faithful  servant  of  God  but  knew  how  t«  prepare  his  way 
in  future. 

S   2 


26o  THE  PSALMS   51.  i 

61     For  the  Chief  Musician.     A  Psalm  of  David  :  when  Nathan  the 
prophet  came  unto  him,  after  he  had  gone  in  to  Bath-sheba. 

I  Have  mercy  upon  me,  O  God,  according  to  thy  loving- 
kindness  : 

Psalm  LI.    A  Penitent's  Prayer. 

This  Psalm  is  sacred  in  the  long  annals  of  human  sorrow  for  sin 
and  desire  for  pardon  and  cleansing.  The  tradition  of  more  than 
two  thousand  years  has  indissolubly  associated  it  with  the  name 
of  David,  his  *  bursts  of  great  heart  and  slips  in  sensual  mire/  his 
dark  transgression  and  whole-souled  repentance.  How  should  it 
be  read  to-day,  and  what  light  does  external  or  internal  evidence 
shed  upon  the  meaning  and  history  of  one  of  the  deepest  utterances 
of  O.  T.  religion  ? 

The  Psalm  before  us  forms  the  first  in  a  small  '  Davidic '  col- 
lection, embodied  by  the  Elohistic  editor  in  what  is  now  described 
as  Book  II.  This  group  extends  to  the  end  of  Ps.  Ixx,  only  Ixvi 
and  Ixvii  being  without  the  title  *  of  David.'  Eight  out  of  the 
number  are  assigned  in  the  titles  to  some  special  period  in  David's 
history.  Now  it  must  be  seen  at  once  that  it  is  quite  impossible 
to  accept  these  titles  literally  ;  to  suppose,  e.  g. ,  that  such  verses  as 
li.  i8,  19  and  liii.  6  were  written  in  David's  time,  or  that  other 
passages,  quite  unsuited  to  his  position,  either  as  fugitive  or  as 
king,  came  from  David's  pen.  It  remains  possible,  however,  that 
this  group  contains  a  nucleus  of  early  compositions,  modified  in 
the  course  of  centuries  and  expressly  prepared  for  public  worship 
in  a  later  age.  An  alternative  view  assumes  that  a  later  poet 
sought  to  describe  appropriately,  as  he  thought,  some  of  the 
circumstances  of  David's  life,  to  aid  the  faith  and  piety  of  a  later 
generation.  But  a  large  number  of  modern  critics  simply  regard  the 
titles  as  erroneous,  attachedjn  error  to  post-Exilic  compositions  by 
editors  who  misunderstood  the  traditional  phrase  *  of  David '  to 
imply  Davidic  authorship.  The  probability  of  these  several 
hypotheses  will  be  discussed  in  detail  in  the  Introduction  and 
notes  to  each  Psalm. 

In  the  present  case,  can  the  title  be  defended?  If  verses  i8 
and  19  formed  a  part  of  the  original  Psalm,  certainly  not,  for  none 
of  the  attempts  to  explain  away  the  obvious  meaning  of  *  Build 
thou  the  walls  of  Jerusalem  '  is  satisfactory.  It  is,  however, 
probable  on  many  grounds  that  these  verses  constitute  a  liturgical 
addition  to  a  distinctly  personal  and  spiritual  Psalm  which  might 
appear  to  disparage  the  sacrificial  system. 

Is  the  main  portion  of  the  Psalm  appropriate  in  David's  lips  ? 
The  often  raised  objection  that  verse  4  ignores  the  gravity  of  his 
offence  on  the  human  side  has  been  often  refuted.     A  sinner  in 


THE   PSALMS  51.   i  261 

According  to  the  multitude  of  thy  tender  mercies  blot  out 
my  transgressions. 

the  presence  of  the  Most  Holy  God  views  himself  and  his  sin  for 
the  moment  in  that  searching  light  alone.  As  Paul  could  not  be 
accounted  chief  of  sinners  in  human  estimation,  so  the  words 
'  against  thee  only  have  I  sinned  '  do  not  necessarily  imply  that 
nothing  in  the  offences  acknowledged  affected  the  penitent's 
fellow  men.  Of  what  kind  of  transgression  is  such  language 
strictly  and  utterly  true  ? 

Still,  it  must  be  questioned  whether  the  general  tone  of  penitence 
is  that  of  David's  day.     We  are  not  prepared  to  say  with  Cheyne, 

*  David  could  not  have  had  these  ideas,'  but  it  is  certainly  true  to 
say  that  both  the  thoughts  and  the  language  of  the  Psalm  har- 
monize better  with  the  period  of  the  second  Isaiah.     The  phrase 

♦  thy  holy  spirit'  in  verse  11  in  our  opinion  points  unquestionably 
to  a  comparatively  late  epoch. 

Modern  critics  who  adopt  a  late  date  for  the  Psalm  strongly 
advocate  a  national  rather  than  a  personal  application  of  the  words. 
The  best  statement  of  this  position  is  that  of  Robertson  Smith, 
who  contends  that  this  is  '  a  Psalm  of  the  true  Israel  of  the  Exile 
in  the  mouth  of  a  prophet,  perhaps  of  the  very  prophet  who  wrote 
the  last  chapters  of  the  Book  of  Isaiah  *.'  He  argues  that  *  blood- 
guiltiness  *  in  verse  14  does  not  mean  murder  but  mortal  sin,  and 
pleads  that  the  words  throughout  fitly  represent  the  spiritual 
experience  of.  Israel.  The  whole  question  of  the  *  I '  of  the 
Psalms  is  discussed  in  the  Introduction  to  vol.  ii,  but  here  it  may 
be  said  that  surely  verses  5  and  6  must  be  personal,  and  that  the 
deepest  significance  of  the  whole  utterance  is  lost  if  the  personal 
element  is  excluded.  That  the  individual  Jew  often  spoke 
representatively,  and  often  thought  of  the  community  to  which  he 
belonged  even  in  his  confessions  of  sin,  is  of  course  not  only 
possible  but  an  unquestionable  and  instructive  fact. 

On  the  whole  question  of  authorship  it  must  be  said  that  it 
cannot  be  proved  that  David  wrote  any  part  of  this  Psalm,  and 
that  probabilities  are  against  the  supposition,  but  that  still  it  may 
be  read  as  in  past  ages  with  David's  sin  and  penitence  in  mind 
as  a  palmary  illustration  of  a  great  heart  greatly  sinning  and 
greatly  repenting.  It  has  for  long  been  reckoned  in  the  Christian 
Church  as  the  fourth  of  the  Penitential  Psalms. 

It  may  be  divided  into  four  parts  :  verses  1-4,  a  general  con- 
fession ;  5-12,  more  minute  acknowledgement  and  earnest  prayer 
for  pardon  ;  13-17,  an  anticipation  of  the  blessings  of  renewal, 
with  18  and  19  as  a  conclusion  added  later. 

1.  The  Psalmist  is  confessing  his  sins,  not  his  crimes.     Hence 

*  Old  Testament  in  the  Jewish  Church,  second  Edition,  Note  E,p.440. 


262  THE   PSALMS  51.  2-4 

2  AVash  me  throughly  from  mine  iniquity. 
And  cleanse  me  from  my  sin. 

3  For  I  acknowledge  my  transgressions : 
And  my  sin  is  ever  before  me. 

4  Against  thee,  thee  only,  have  I  sinned, 
And  done  that  which  is  evil  in  thy  sight : 

That  thou  mayest  be  justified  when  thou  speakest, 
And  be  clear  when  thou  judgest. 

he  casts  himself  on  the  Divine  grace  as  the  only  power  which  can 
set  him  right.  He  prays  '  Be  gracious  unto  me,'  and  rests  his 
plea  upon  (i)  the  bond  of  covenant  loviu^kindness  between  God 
and  His  people,  and  (2)  the  'abundant  compassions'  which  belong 
to  the  Divine  character.     See  Exod.  xxxiv.  6,  7. 

2.  In  the  former  verse  the  plural,  in  this  verse  the  singular 
number  is  employed  to  describe  sin.  Acts  of  departure  from  the 
law  of  God  may  be  manifold,  the  root-evil  is  one.  It  is  here 
described  by  two  words,  of  which  iniquity  denotes  rather  the 
human  aspect  of  evil  as  perverseness,  distortion,  while  sin 
indicates  a  failure,  as  in  God's  sight,  to  reach  the  true  end  of  man. 

Of  the  three  words  used  for  pardon,  viz.  blot  out,  wasli,  and 
cleanse,  the  first  is  used  of  the  wiping  away  of  debt,  the  second 
of  the  washing  of  clothes  from  deeply  ingrained  filth  by  kneading, 
and  the  third  of  declaring  clean  from  leprosy.  It  would  probably 
be  a  mistake  to  press  the  etymological  meaning  in  the  many  cases 
where  these  words  are  metaphorically  used.  The  significance  of 
the  combination  lies  in  this,  that  the  Psalmist  employs  a  variety 
of  words  both  for  sin  and  for  forgiveness,  to  show  the  depth  of  his 
penitence  and  his  earnest  desire  for  pardon. 

3.  The  literal  rendering  '  For  I  know  '  expresses  the  meaning 
better  than  I  acknowled^^  The  Psalmist  does  not  ask  for 
forgiveness  on  the  ground  that  he  is  now  confessing  his  sin,  but 
explains  his  plea  for  mercy  by  saying  how  conscious  he  is  of  the 
lieinousness  of  his  offence  and  that  he  cannot  banish  the  tjiought 
of  it  from  his  mind. 

4.  Now  the  confession  begins.  The  emphasis  still  lies  upon 
the  Psalmist's  relation  to  God  ;  it  is  the  evil  of  his  action  *in  the 
sight  of  Jehovah  '  (2  Sam.  xi.  27  and  xii.  9)  which  now  chiefly 
impresses  him.  He  makes  this  confession  in  order  that  it  maj' 
be  made  perfectly  clear  that  God  is  justified  in  pronouncing 
sentence  of  condemnation.  The  grace  for  which  the  Psalmist 
asks  can  only  be  granted  on  these  terms.  Paul's  quotation  in 
Rom.  iii.  4  follows  the  LXX  in  phraseology,  but  is  perfectly  true 
to  the  meaning  of  the  original. 


THE  PSALMS  51.  s-y  263 

Behold,  I  was  shai^en  in  iniquity; 

And  in  sin  did  my  mother  conceive  me. 

Behold,  thou  desirest  truth  in  the  inward  parts : 

And  in  the  hidden  part  thou  shalt  make  me  to  know 

wisdom. 
Purge  me  with  hyssop,  and  I  shall  be  clean : 
Wash  me,  and  I  shall  be  whiter  than  snow. 
Make  me  to  hear  joy  and  gladness ; 
ITiat  the  bones  which  thou  hast  broken  may  rejoice. 
Hide  thy  face  from  my  sins, 
And  blot  out  all  mine  iniquities. 

5,  6.  The  confession  becomes  still  more  complete  and  thorough. 
Not  only  are  the  actions  in  themselves  wrong  and  the  sinful 
incHnations  which  led  to  them,  but  the  evil  goes  deeper  into  the 
nature,  which  is  represented  as  having  been  infected  even  from 
birth.  This  is  not  alleged  in  palliation  of  the  offence,  but  rather 
as  showing  greater  need  for  forgiveness  and  cleansing.  Nothing 
but  inward  holiness  will  suffice  for  a  holy  God.  Truth  and 
wisdom  are  characteristic  words  in  the  O.  T.,  used  especially  in  the 
later  period  as  synonyms  for  righteousness.  Knowledge  of  the 
right,  and  sincere  desire  and  effort  to  perform  it,  may  be  described 
by  any  of  these  three  words.  It  is  better  to  read  the  last  line  as 
a  prayer,  '  Therefore  make  me  to  know  wisdom  in  the  inner 
chamber  of  my  heart' 

7.  hyssop  :  mentioned  in  Exod.  xii.  22  in  connexion  with  the 
passover,  and  in  Num.  xix.  6  and  Heb.  ix.  19  in  reference  to  the 
cleansing  of  the  leper,  was  apparently  a  kind  of  wild  marjoram 
with  an  aromatic  flavour,  possessing  '  straight,  slender,  leafy  stalks 
with  small  heads,'  growing  so  that  a  bunch  could  readily  be  broken 
off  and  used  for  sprinkling.  Ceremonial  purification,  therefore, 
is  associated  with  the  word  purge,  while  wash  has  reference 
to  the  removal  of  actual  defilement  of  the  clothing  or  the  person. 

whiter  than  snow :  see  Isa.  i.  18  ;  it  is  impossible  to  say 
whether  Psalmist  or  prophet — if  either — is  the  borrower  here  and 
elsewhere  in  the  Psalm,  where  parallel  expressions  are  found. 

8.  'Breaking  of  the  bones'  is  used  metaphorically  in  Pss.  xxxii.  3 
and  xlii.  lo  of  a  deep  dejection  and  grief  which  as  it  were  shatters 
the  whole  frame.  In  this  case  it  is  produced  by  a  guilty 
conscience,  i.  e.  under  the  hand  of  God. 

9.  The  usual  phrase  for  forgiveness  implies  that  sin  should  be 
*  covered '  in  God's  sight  y  here  He  is  represented  as  averting  His 


264  THE   PSALMS  51.  10-13 

10  Create  in  me  a  clean  heart,  O  God ; 
And  renew  a  right  spirit  within  me. 

1 1  Cast  me  not  away  from  thy  presence ; 
And  take  not  thy  holy  spirit  from  me. 

12  Restore  unto  me  the  joy  of  thy  salvation  : 
And  uphold  me  with  a  free  spirit. 

13  Then  will  I  teach  transgressors  thy  ways; 
And  sinners  shall  be  converted  unto  thee. 

face  that  He  may  not  see  it.     Both  expressions  are,  of  course, 
anthropomorphic. 

10.  This  and  the  two  following  verses  contain  six  prayers,  all 
marked  by  a  spiritual  and  evangelical,  or,  as  it  may  be  called,  a 
New  Testament  character.  This  tone,  only  paralleled  in  the  Old 
Testament  in  the  second  Isaiah,  and  to  a  less  degree  in  Jeremiah  and 
Ezekiel,  is  one  of  the  strongest  arguments  against  Davidic  author- 
ship. 

Render,  'Create  for  me'  (R.  V.  marg.),  and  instead  of  'right,' 
'a  steadfast  spirit.'  An  entirely  new  heart  is  intended,  not 
restoration  to  a  former  condition.  The  Psalmist  recognizes  that 
only  a  clean  heart  thus  created  afresh  by  Divine  power  can  be 
constant  under  the  assaults  of  temptation. 

11.  A  heart  thus  cleansed  must  be  kept  clean  by  the  sense  of 
God's  presence.  Defilement  and  inconstancy  alienate  from  God  ; 
a  man  who  walks  in  the  light  of  His  countenance  is  preserved 
from  sin.  The  I10I7  spirit  of  God  is  mentioned  only  here  and  in 
Isa.  Ixiii.  lo,  ii.  The  phrase  prepares  the  way  for  N.  T.  teaching, 
but  it  indicates  here  not  a  Divine  Person,  an  interior  distinction  in 
the  Deity,  but  a  Divine  influence  resting  upon  man. 

12.  The  prayers  of  this  verse  describe  the  results  which  will 
follow  from  answers  to  those  which  precede.  These  are  joy, 
such  as  those  who  live  in  the' Divine  presence  experience,  because 
they  have  ever  a  Defender  and  Saviour  (Ps.  v.  11),  and  '  a  willing 
spirit,'  one  whose  inward  impulses  are  so  renewed  that  spon- 
taneously and  eagerly  it  moves  in  the  right  way.  The  word  is 
used  of  freewill  offerings,  Exod.  xxxv.  5,  and  of  'nobles'  or 
*  princes '  in  Ps.  xlvii.  9  ;  Prov.  xxv.  7.  The  LXX  follows  the 
latter  meaning.  An  illuminative  parallel  is  Isa.  xxxii.  5,  where 
the  connexion  between  nobility  and  liberaUty  is  brought  out. 
Compare  Keble's  'princely  heart  of  innocence.' 

13.  The  first  manifestation  of  a  changed  heart  is  readiness  to 
testify  and  persuade  other  transgressors  to  turn  to  the  right  way. 
The  language  is  intelligible  in  the  mouth  of  David,  though  it  is 
much  more  appropriate  as  coming  from  one  of  the  later  prophets. 


THE   PSALMS  51.  14-18  265 

Deliver  me  from  bloodguiltiness,  O  God,  thou  God  of  my  14 

salvation ; 
And  my  tongue  shall  sing  aloud  of  thy  righteousness. 
O  Lord,  open  thou  my  lips ;  15 

And  my  mouth  shall  shew  forth  thy  praise. 
For  thou  delightest  not  in  sacrifice ;  else  would  I  give  it :  16 
Thou  hast  no  pleasure  in  burnt  offering. 
The  sacrifices  of  God  are  a  broken  spirit :  17 

A  broken  and  a  contrite  heart,  O  God,  thou  wilt  not 

despise. 

Do  good  in  thy  good  pleasure  unto  Zion  :  18 

14.  On  the  other  hand,  the  phrase  bloodgrniltiness,  lit.  '  blood  ' 
(plural),  is  most  naturally  understood  of  one  who  had  the  sin  of 
murder,  directly  or  indirectly,  upon  his  head.  '  A  man  of  bloods,* 
Ps.  V.  7,  is  a  murderer.  It  is  doubtless  used  of  the  nation  in  such 
passages  as  Isa.  i.  15 ;  Ezek.  vii.  23,  and  it  might  mean  here  the 
consequences  of  mortal  sin,  but  it  would  apply  most  appropriately 
to  a  conscience  burdened  with  such  a  crime  as  David's  murderous 
exposure  of  Uriah  in  battle. 

-Uiyrififhteousness.  Forgiveness  is  not  viewed  as  an  infraction 
of  the  law  of  righteousness,  but  an  illustration  of  it :  since  God 
has  promised  to  forgive  the  penitent. 

15.  The  lips  had  been  closed  from  praise  and  all  acts  of  worship 
by  alienation  of  heart  and  aberration  of  life.  The  penitent 
contemplates  with  joy  the  prospect  of  being  restored  to  the 
congregation  of  God's  true  Israel. 

16.  Render,  <  That  I  should  give  it'  (R.  V.  marg.).  The 
language  used  here  concerning  sacrifice  corresponds  with  that  of 
Pss.  xl.  6  and  1.  8.  Only  a  comparative  disregard  of  outward 
sacrifices  is  intended  ;  the  penitent  is  conscious  that  the  blood  of 
bulls  and  of  goats  will  not  cleanse  his  sins  or  serve  for  thank- 
off"ering. 

17.  Thanksgiving  is  the  acceptable  sacrifice  of  Ps.  1.  14,  23  ; 
the  mention  of  contrition  here  shows  that  the  Psalmist  is  thinking 
rather  of  initial  approach  to  God  than  of  acknowledgement  and 
service  after  forgiveness. 

18.  10.  If  these  verses  form,  as  seems  most  likely,  a  liturgical 
addition,  it  would  seem  that  they  are  partly  intended  to  correct 
the  impression  left  by  16  and  17,  still  shared  by  many,  that  God 
required  only  spiritual  sacrifices.      The  priest  tones  down  the 


266  THE  PSALMS  51.  19—52.  i 

Build  thou  the  walls  of  Jerusalem. 
19  Then  shalt  thou  delight  in  the  sacrifices  of  righteousness, 
in  burnt  offering  and  whole  burnt  offering : 
Then  shall  they  offer  bullocks  upon  thine  altar. 

52  For  the  Chief  Musician.  Maschil  of  David  :  when  Doeg  the 
Edomite  came  and  told  Saul,  and  said  unto  him,  David  is 
come  to  the  house  of  Ahimelech. 

I  Why  boastest  thou  thyself  in  mischief,  O  mighty  man? 

strong  language  of  the  prophet.  The  view  of  Ewald  and  others, 
dating  indeed  from  Theodoret,  which  makes  the  whole  Psalm  an 
utterance  of  the  period  of  the  Exile,  interprets  16  and  17  of  the 
impossibility  of  offering  sacrifices  in  captivity,  while  18  and  19 
contain  a  vow  to  renew  these  when  Jerusalem  is  restored  from 
her  desolation. 

Build  thou  the  walls  of  Jerusalem  must  be  understood  in 
the  light  of  Ps.  cxlvii.  2  ;  even  Delitzsch  acknowledges  that  only 
by  a  strain  can  the  phrase  be  put  into  David's  mouth  and  made  to 
refer  to  the  wall  which  Solomon  built,  i  Kings  iii.  i. 

Outward  offerings  may  be  sacrifices  of  rigrhteousuess,  if 
presented  in  a  right  spirit.  No  prophetic  teaching,  from  i  Sam. 
XV.  22  onwards,  was  ever  intended  to  contravene  that  statement. 
The  use  of  two  words,  'a/aA  =  burnt-offering  and  kalil=  whole 
burnt-offering,  is  poetical,  to  emphasize  the  thought ;  the  former 
word  lays  stress  on  the  burning,  the  ascending  in  smoke,  the 
latter  on  the  entire  consumption  of  the  victim.  Forms  of  religion 
are  still  necessary,  even  for  the  most  spiritual  worshippers,  and 
it  is  natural  that  if  this  deeply  personal  and  highly  spiritual  Psalm 
was  to  be  used  in  the  temple-worship,  such  a  recognition  as  these 
closing  verses  contain  should  be  made  of  the  significance  and 
value  of  the  temple  sacrifices.  wj  ••■'•* 

Psalm  LII.     The  Oppressor's  OvERTHRbw. 

The  evildoer  so  vigorously  denounced  in  this  Psalm  is  rich, 
influential,  cruel  and  a  liar.  If  David  were  its  author,  it  would 
not  be  unnatural  to  think  of  Doeg  as  the  *  man  of  mischief,' 
although  the  description  does  not  fit  in  detail.  Doeg  was  hardly 
a  mighty  man,  though  he  was  'chief  herdman,'  and  see  i  Sam. 
xxi.  7.  marg.  ;  he  did  not  tell  lies,  though  he  did  give  information 
concerning  David's  movements  ;  he  could  not  be  said  to  *  trust  in 
riches ' ;  and  the  Psalm  contains  no  allusion  to  his  slaughter  of 
the  priests  (i  Sam.  xxii.  18).  Hengstenberg,  in  maintaining  the 
Davidic  authorship,  thinks  that  Saul  is  the  person  addressed  in  the 


THE   PSALMS  52.  2-4  267 

The  mercy  of  God  eiidureth  continually. 

Thy  tongue  deviseth  very  wickedness ;  2 

Like  a  sharp  razor,  working  deceitfully. 

Thou  lovest  evil  more  than  good ;  3 

And  lying  rather  than  to  speak  righteousness.  [Selah 

Thou  lovest  all  devouring  words,  4 

Psalm.  It  is  much  more  probable  that  the  Psalm  belongs  to  the 
period  of  the  later  Monarchy,  when  national  wealth  had  increased 
and  there  was  a  tendency  to  concentrate  it  in  few  hands,  when 
the  poorer  classes  were  oppressed,  as  described  by  Amos  and 
Micah,  and  all  kinds  of  unscrupulous  methods  were  employed  to 
crush  and  to  plunder  in  the  name  of  justice.  See  Amos  v.  11, 
viii.  6 ;  Micah  ii.  2,  vii.  3.  This  passionate  cry  of  a  humble  saint 
is  much  more  suitably  placed  amidst  such  conditions  than  in  the 
lips  of  David  denouncing  Doeg.  There  is  no  need  to  bring  it, 
as  do  Cheyne  and  others,  down  so  late  as  the  Persian  period ; 
nor  can  it  be  said  to  be  '  animated  by  a  strong  Church-sentiment.' 
The  use  of  the  term  *  saints,*  as  in  the  last  verse,  is  not  confined 
to  the  Maccabaean  and  pre-Maccabaean  periods. 

The  first  half  of  the  Psalm,  1-5,  contains  a  denunciation  of  a 
prominent  oppressor  ;  the  latter,  6-9,  draws  in  favourable  contrast 
a  picture  of  the  security  of  the  righteous.  For  the  word  Maschil 
see  Introd.  p.  16. 

1.  The  abrupt  opening  is  most  effective.  To  *  glor}'  in  evil- 
doing  '  implies  a  conscience  hardened  against  all  considerations 
of  right,  and  an  arrogant  triumph  in  the  success  of  injustice. 
O  mighty  man,  perhaps  better,  'Thou  tyrant!  '  (P.B.V.).  The 
word  does  not  usually  carry  wath  it  an  evil  sense,  but  mere  might 
soon  becomes  self-confident  and  unjust.  Such  boasting  is  short- 
sighted ;  the  lovingkindness  of  God '  (the  Strong  One)  is  mightier, 
and  it  '  endureth  all  the  day,'  not  for  a  passing  hour. 

2,  3.  very  wickedness:  lit.  '  destructions,'  i.  e.  the  utter  ruin 
of  the  man  oppressed.  The  clause  working*  deceitfully  applies 
not  to  the  tongue,  nor  the  razor,  but  to  the  man  himself,  '  O  thou 
framer  of  deceit ! '  The  frequent  mention  of  lying  and  slander  in 
these  Psalms  of  the  oppressed  shows  that  the  forms  of  justice  were 
in  a  measure  preserved.  Unblushing  violence  was  no  doubt  often 
committed,  but  the  practice  of  fraud  gave  an  additional  bitterness 
to  the  cruelty  complained  of.  To  be  robbed  is  hard,  to  be  slandered 
is  often  harder  to  bear  ;  the  Psalmist  suffered  both.  Compare  the 
denunciation  of  unjust  judges  in  Ps.  Ixxxii. 

4,  5.  The  concentration  of  wrath  upon  the  lying  tongue  shows 
that  tlie  mischief  had  been  wrought  by  it  rather  than  by  brute 


268  THE   PSALMS  52.  5-8 

O  thou  deceitful  tongue. 

5  God  shall  likewise  destroy  thee  for  ever, 

He  shall  take  thee  up,  and  pluck  thee  out  of  thy  tent, 
And  root  thee  out  of  the  land  of  the  living.  [Selah 

6  The  righteous  also  shall  see  /V,  and  fear, 
And  shall  laugh  at  him,  sayings 

7  Lo,  this  is  the  man  that  made  not  God  his  strength ; 
But  trusted  in  the  abundance  of  his  riches, 

And  strengthened  himself  in  his  wickedness. 

8  But  as  for  me,  I  am  like  a  green  olive  tree  in  the  house 

of  God : 

force,  though  doubtless  the  wealth  and  standing  of  the  oppressor 
caused  his  word  to  be  readily  believed. 

The  tyrant  is  identified  with  the  tongue,  but  the  figures  of 
verse  5  apply  to  the  former,  not  to  the  latter.  The  metaphors  are 
twofold.  One  is  indicated  by  the  word  destroy,  lit.  '  break  down ' 
or  smash  utterly,  used  of  cities  or  houses,  Deut.  vii.  5  ;  2  Kings 
X.  27.  The  other  three  words  — 'lay  hold,'  'pluck  up,'  '  root  out* 
— belong  together.  The  ground  of  boasting  is  that  this  evil  man 
is  so  securely  entrenched  in  his  position  that  he  may  do  any  kind 
of  mischief  with  impunity;  the  Psalmist  foretells  that  a  mightier 
than  he  will  seize  liim,  as  a  man  seizes  coal  with  the  tongs,  or 
a  weed  in  the  earth,  pluck  him  out  of  his  place  and  cast  him 
away  for  ever.  So  Jeremiah  contrasts  the  desolate  condition 
of  the  man  who  '  maketh  flesh  his  arm  '  with  the  security  and 
fruitfulness  of  the  righteous,  Jer.  xvii.  5-8.  So  also  another 
Psalmist  anticipates  the  retribution  that  awaits  the  deceitful  tongue, 
cxx.  3,  4. 

6.  The  fear  is  caused  by  the  suddenness  and  completeness  of 
the  overthrow  ;  it  implies  the  awe  occasioned  by  the  manifestation 
of  Divine  might.  Shall  laug-h,  not  in  the  petty,  malicious  spirit 
of  one  who  gloats  over  a  neighbour's  discomfiture,  but  with  the 
joy  of  a  man  who  after  long  discouragement  sees  clear  proof  that 
righteousness  is  stronger  than  unrighteousness,  and  that  there  is 
a  God  who  will  vindicate  the  cause  of  truth.  Such  confidence  it 
is  always  hard  to  maintain  under  grinding  oppression,  and  with 
no  clear  hope  of  a  future  life  the  righteous  poor  amongst  the  Jews 
must  often  have  been  tempted  to  despair. 

7.  This  verse  shows  the  ground  of  the  triumph  and  the  lesson 
to  be  learned  from  it.  Compare  the  teaching  of  Ps.  xlix  and  the 
phraseology  of  verse  6. 

8.  Perowne  places  a  comma  after  tree,  making  the  clause  in 


THE   PSALMS  52.  9—53.  i  269 

I  trust  in  the  mercy  of  God  for  ever  and  ever. 
I  will  give  thee  thanks  for  ever,  because  thou  hast  done  it :  9 
And  I  will  wait  on  thy  name,  for  it  is  good,  in  the  presence 
of  thy  saints. 

For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  set  to  Mahalath.     Maschil  of  David.       53 
The  fool  hath  said  in  his  heart.  There  is  no  God.  i 

Corrupt  are  they,  and  have  done  abominable  iniquity ; 

the  house  of  God  to  describe  the  position  and  security  of  the 
speaker.  In  any  case  the  olive  tree  cannot  be  in  the  house  ;  it 
is  not  a  case  of  growing  '  in  the  courts  of  the  house,'  as  in  Ps.  xcii. 
13.  The  Psalmist  means  two  things :  he  is  flourishing  whilst  his 
rich  oppressor  is  desolate  ;  he  is  at  home,  happy  and  safe,  whilst 
the  other,  whose  position  seemed  impregnable,  is  an  exile  and 
wanderer.  The  '  lovingkindness  of  God '  is  the  best  safeguard 
for  ever  and  ever. 

9.  Hence,  thanksgiving  for  the  past  and  trust  for  the  future. 
In  the  presence  of  thy  saints  might  seem  to  imply  some  such 
verb  as  *  I  will  declare '  thy  name ;  Hupfeld  and  others  would 
correct  the  text,  and  Cheyne  even  calls  the  word  wait  'senseless.' 
It  is  unusual,  and  a  slight  change  would  give  *  I  will  celebrate.' 
The  text  as  it  stands  can  only  mean,  '  I  will  attend  in  thy  house 
and  wait  for  further  manifestations  of  thy  goodness.'  For  the 
word  saints,  or  'beloved  ones,'  see  Ps.  1.  9  and  detached  note  on 
chasidim  in  Appendix,  p.  360. 

Psalm  LI II.     A  Later  Version  of  Psalm  XIV. 

For  an  exposition  of  the  substance  of  the  Psalm,  see  Ps.  xiv. 
Here  it  need  only  be  noted  that  the  name  Elohim  is  found  instead 
of  Yahweh,as  elsewhere  in  this  Book,  and  that  the  minorvariations 
of  the  text  raise  an  interesting  question.  Are  the  texts  of  both 
Psalms  as  we  have  them  derived  from  a  common  original  ?  Or 
does  this  Psalm  represent  a  deliberately  modified  recension  of  xiv, 
adapted  to  the  circumstances  of  a  later  time  ?  The  question  can 
hardly  be  settled  with  our  present  data,  but  the  latter  seems  to  be 
the  more  probable  supposition.  The  similarity  between  the  letters 
in  Ps.  xiv.  5,  6  and  verse  5  of  this  Psalm  has  been  thought  to 
point  to  conjectural  emendation  on  the  part  of  the  editor  who 
included  the  Psalm  in  Book  II,  but  the  whole  facts  are  best 
accounted  for  on  the  hypothesis  of  a  second  recension  intended 
for  the  new  circumstances  of  a  later  period.  The  modifications 
are  slight,  but  noteworthy. 

1.  .Tbi»  version  as  compared  with  xiv.  i  adds  and,  and  reads 


270  THE   PSALMS  53.  2-6 

There  is  none  that  doeth  good. 

2  God  looked  down  from  heaven  upon  the  children  of  men, 
To  see  if  there  were  any  that  did  understand, 

That  did  seek  after  God. 

3  Every  one  of  them  is  gone  back;  they  are  together  become 

filthy ; 
There  is  none  that  doeth  good,  no,  not  one. 

4  Have  the  workers  of  iniquity  no  knowledge  ? 
Who  eat  up  my  people  as  they  eat  bread, 
And  call  not  upon  God. 

5  There  were  they  in  great  fear,  where  no  fear  was  : 

For  God  hath  scattered  the  bones  of  him  that  encampeth 

against  thee ; 
Thou  hast  put  them  to  shame,  because  God  hath  rejected 

them. 

6  Oh  that  the  salvation  of  Israel  were  come  out  of  Zion  ! 
When  God  bringeth  back  the  captivity  of  his  people, 
Then  shall  Jacob  rejoice,  a?id  Israel  shall  be  glad. 

iniquity   for  '  works.'     Both  changes  mark  a  later  hand  :   the 
earlier  form  is  the  simpler  and  stronger. 

3.  ifoue  back  instead  of '  gone  aside ' ;  a  slight  and  unimportant 
change  of  word. 

4.  '  All '  is  omitted  befdre  workers  of  iniquity,  as  in  xiv.  4. 

5.  Here  considerable  changes  occur.  The  clause  where  no 
fear  was  is  added,  and  two  strong  phrases  are  found  instead  of  the 
tamer  text  of  xiv.  5, 6  :  God  liatli  scattered  the  bones  of  him  that 
encampeth  ag-ainst  thee  ;  and  God  hath  rejected  them.  These 
alterations,  which  still  preserve  much  of  the  sound  of  the  original, 
might  easily  be  accounted  for  if  it  was  desired  to  adapt  the  Psalm 
for  use  on  the  occasion  of  some  great  deliverance,  like  the  over- 
throw of  Sennacherib's  army.  But  if  Ps.  xiv  belongs  to  the  time 
of  Manasseh,  it  would  not  be  easy  to  find  such  an  event,  e.  g.  in 
the  time  of  Jeremiah. 

6.  This  last  verse  occurs  in  both  recensions,  and  is  not  impro- 
bably a  liturgical  addition  appended  later  still.  For  though  the 
phraseology  does  not  necessarily  imply  the  Babylonish  captivity, 
it  is  best  understood  as  a  post-Exilic  utterance. 

If  the   theory   be  adopted  of  one  common  text  for  the  two 


THE   PSALMS  54.  1-3  271 

For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  on  stringed  instruments.     Maschil  of  54 
David :  when  the  Ziphites  came  and  said  to  Saul,  Doth  not 
David  hide  himself  with  us  ? 

Save  me,  O  God,  by  thy  name,  i 

And  judge  me  in  thy  might. 

Hear  my  prayer,  O  God ;  2 

Give  ear  to  the  words  of  my  mouth. 

For  strangers  are  risen  up  against  me,  3 

And  violent  men  have  sought  after  my  soul : 

recensions — as  advocated,  for  example,  by  Dr.  E.  G.  King  in  his 
commentary — then  the  Psalm  may  well  have  been  composed  in  the 
period  Hezekiah-Manasseh,  the  two  recensions  exhibiting  more 
or  less  corrupt  editions  of  it  current  in  the  interval,  both  being 
embodied  after  the  Exile  in  different  collections  of  Psalms,  with 
the  liturgical  petition  added,  praying  for  a  restoration  of  the 
fortunes  of  Israel. 

Psalm  LIV.     Deliverance  from  Peril. 

The  writer  of  this  Psalm  is  in  danger  from  godless  foes.  These 
may,  or  may  not,  have  been  foreigners,  verse  3.  Otherwise  there 
is  hardly  anything  in  the  Psalm  to  fix  its  date.  The  title  assigns 
it  to  the  incident  in  David's  persecution  by  Saul,  when  the 
Ziphites  informed  the  king  that  David  was  hiding  in  their  <  wilder- 
ness,' a  region  a  few  miles  distant  from  Hebron  '  covered  with 
scrub  and  honeycombed  by  caves,'  G.  A.  Smith.  See  i  Sam. 
xxiii.  19,  xxvi.  i.  The  language  of  the  Psalm  contains  nothing 
specially  appropriate  to  that  occasion,  neither  is  there  anything 
distinctly  unsuitable,  unless  it  be  the  phraseology  of  verse  3.   .. 

The  first  three  verses  of  the  Psalm  describe  a  perilous  situation, 
and  the  latter  four  anticipate  complete  deliverance.  For  the  term 
MascMl  see  p.  16. 

1.  The  name  of  God  stands  for  His  whole  manifested  character. 
The  Psalmist  confidently  rests  his  plea  on  the  Divine  nature  and 
Divine  strength  as  revealed  in  history,  and  he  claims  that  his 
righteous  cause  should  be  vindicated  and  the  dangers  which 
threatened  him  averted. 

2.  Accordingly  he  prays  as  to  One  who  seems  to  have  forgotten 
him,  but  who  will  not  refuse  to  hear  the  cry  of  His  servant. 

3.  The  word  translated  strangfers  most  frequently  means  those 
who  are  strange  to  a  country,  i.  e.  foreigners,  who  may  be  pre- 
sumed to  be  hostile.  So  in  Hos.  vii.  9,  viii.  7  ;  Isa.  i.  7,  3cxv.  2, 
5,  &c.     But  it  may  mean  strange  to  a  person,  or  to  a  family  :  see 


272  THE   PSALMS  54.  4-7 

They  have  not  set  God  before  them.  [Selah 

4  Behold,  God  is  mine  helper : 

The  Lord  is  of  them  that  uphold  my  soul. 

5  He  shall  requite  the  evil  unto  mine  enemies : 
Destroy  thou  them  in  thy  truth. 

6  With  a  freewill  offering  will  I  sacrifice  unto  thee : 

I  will  give  thanks  unto  thy  name,  O  Lord,  for  it  is  good. 

7  For  he  hath  delivered  me  out  of  all  trouble ; 

And  mine  eye  hath  seen  my  desire  upon  mine  enemies. 


article  *  Stranger '  in  Hastings's  Bible  Did.  i.  623.  Violent  men 
(or  ^fierce,'  or  'terrible')  are  described  as  synonymous  with 
wicked  Israelites  in  Jer.  xv.  21  ;  and  those  who  liave  not  set 
God  before  them  may  be  either  inside  or  outside  the  pale  of  the 
covenant- nation.  The  whole  description  does  not  at  all  suggest 
such  foes  as  the  Ziphites,  and  it  is  difficult  to  fit  the  language  of 
these  verses  to  the  situation  described  in  the  title. 

The  parallel  passage  in  Ps.  Ixxxvi,  14  reads  '  proud  '  instead  of 

*  strangers,'  the  Hebrew  words  being  very  much  alike. 

4.  The  Lord  is  of  (A.V.  '  with  ')  them  that  uphold  my  soul. 
The  preposition  used  here,  known  as  Beth  essentiae,  ascribes  to  God 
the  character  described  by  the  clause  following ;  He  *  falls  under 
the  category  of  such  and  fills  it  by  Himself  alone  '  (Delitzsch),  i.e. 
He  is  the  upholder  or  sustainer  of  my  soul.     Cheyne  translates 

*  the  great  upholder,*  and  compares  Judges  xi.  35,  where  he  repre- 
sents Jephthah  as  saying  to  his  daughter,  'Thou  art  my  greatest 
troubler,'  but  the  form  of  speech  hardly  implies  so  much  as  this. 

5.  thy  truth :  i.  e.  the  Divine  fidelity  to  His  own  character, 
His  revealed  promises  and  the  actual  facts  of  the  case,  demands 
that  these  wicked  men  should  be  cut  off. 

6.  The  freewill  offering*  (see  Num.  xv.  3)  was  recognized  in 
connexion  with  the  ordained  round  of  sacrificial  ritual.  But  some 
interpreters  translate,  *  With  a  free  will  I  will  offer  sacrifice,'  i.  e. 
statutes  shall  become  songs  and  duty  will  be  all  delight.  Note 
that  the  name  Yahweh  is  retained  here  in  this  Elohistic  Psalm; 
either  by  a  slip,  or  because  this  name  was  more  usual  in  such 
a  connexion,  or  most  probably  by  way  of  emphasis.  When  the 
Psalmist  is  dwelling  upon  the  excellence  of  the  Divine  name  he 
clings  to  that  covenant-title  which  meant  so  much  for  him  and  for 
all  Israel. 

7.  The  perfect  tense  hath  delivered,  hath  seen,  is  anticipatory  ; 
it  describes  what  will  have  happened  when — as  the  Psalmist  hopes, 


THE   PSALMS  55.  i,  2  273 

For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  on  stringed  instruments.     Maschil       55 
of  David. 

Give  ear  to  my  prayer,  O  God ;  * 

And  hide  not  thyself  from  my  supplication. 

Attend  unto  me,  and  answer  me  :  2 

soon — he    offers    his   sacrifice   of   thanksgiving    for   deliverance 
triumphantly  accompUshed. 

Psalm  LV.     Prayer  of  one  basely  betrayed. 

If  this  Psalm  be  understood  to  be  David's,  it  must  inevitably  be 
referred  to  the  rebellion  of  Absalom  and  the  treachery  of  Ahitho- 
phel,  and  thus  verses  12-14  have  been  understood  for  centuries, 
from  the  time  of  the  Targum  onwards.  But  closer  examination 
shows  that  a  superficial  resemblance  to  the  circumstances  of 
David  covers  an  altogether  different  situation.  The  writer  of  this 
Psalm  is  not  a  king,  not  even  a  king  under  a  cloud  ;  he  is  in  the 
city  when  he  writes,  and  unable  to  escape  ;  he  lives  in  a  condition 
of  society  unlike  that  of  Jerusalem  in  David's  time.  He  suffered 
from  base  treachery  like  David,  but  the  king  would  not  have 
styled  Ahithophel  his  '  equal,'  and  neither  the  previous  intercourse 
(verse  14)  nor  the  mode  of  betrayal  (verses  20,  21)  corresponds 
v^th  the  conditions  under  which  the  former  '  privy  councillor ' 
tried  to  mislead  his  sovereign.  Hitzig  interprets  the  Psalm  of 
Jeremiah  and  Pashhur  ;  while  Olshausen  brings  the  date  down  to 
the  Syrian  period,  and  refers  to  the  story  of  Alcimus  in  i  Mace, 
vii.  9-25.  One  can  only  say  that  these  conjectures  are  even  less 
probable  than  the  traditional  ascription  to  David. 

Relinquishing  the  attempt  to  fix  the  exact  occasion  of  the  Psalm, 
we  find  in  it  a  very  graphic  picture  of  a  servant  of  God  immured 
in  a  city  full  of  anarchy  and  discord,  assailed  by  cruel  enemies, 
deserted  by  all  his  friends  and  especially  by  one  who  was  bound 
to  him  by  the  most  sacred  ties,  but  had  shamelessly  betrayed  him 
and  sided  with  his  foes.  He  longs  for  peace,  and  can  find  none 
around  him,  nor  any  outward  way  of  escape.  He  turns,  however, 
to  that  spiritual  refuge  which  every  good  man  can  find  in  the 
sanctuary  of  his  own  soul  and  casts  his  burden  upon  Jehovah,  sure 
of  finding  help  in  God's  own  time  and  way. 

Verses  1-8  contain  the  Psalmist's  complaint  and  a  description  ot 
his  sore  need  ;  in  9-15  he  breaks  out  in  strong  denunciation  of 
the  wicked  who  are  the  cause  of  his  trouble ;  while  in  16-23  he 
takes  refuge  in  God  and  in  prayer,  gaining  confidence  as  he 
proceeds  and  ending  with  assured  faith  and  hope. 

1-3.  An  earnest  appeal  for  a  hearing  from  one  whose  plea  is 
his  great  need.     Two  words  describe  the  Psalmist's  condition  : 

T 


274  THE   PSALMS  55.  3-8 

I  am  restless  in  my  complaint,  and  moan ; 

3  Because  of  the  voice  of  the  enemy, 
Because  of  the  oppression  of  the  wicked ; 
For  they  cast  iniquity  upon  me. 

And  in  anger  they  persecute  me. 

4  My  heart  is  sore  pained  within  me : 

And  the  terrors  of  death  are  fallen  upon  me. 

5  Fearfulness  and  trembling  are  come  upon  me, 
And  horror  hath  overwhelmed  me. 

6  And  I  said,  Oh  that  I  had  wings  like  a  dove ! 
Then  would  I  fly  away,  and  be  at  rest. 

7  Lo,  then  would  I  wander  far  off, 

I  would  lodge  in  the  wilderness.  [Selah 

8  I  would  haste  me  to  a  shelter 
From  the  stormy  wind  and  tempest. 

(i)  Z  ana  restless,  and  therefore  either  (2)  '  I  must  moan  ' — must 
relieve  myself  by  pouring  out  broken  cries ;  or,  '  I  am  deeply 
stirred  '  and  agitated.  The  ground  of  this  trouble  is  the  oppression 
of  the  enemy.  These  (i)  slander  and  threaten  him  with  the 
voice ;  (2)  cast  iniquity  upon  him,  either  in  the  sense  of  heaping 
curses,  or,  more  probably,  piling  up  one  wicked  device  after 
another  against  him  ;  and  (3)  make  their  anger  felt  in  direct 
'persecution.' 

4,  5.  His  life  is  more  than  threatened  ;  he  is  passing  through 
the  very  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death.  Pain  and  fear  are 
succeeded  by  horror — a  rkre  word,  see  its  use  in  Ezek.  vii.  18. 
This  deeper  shadow  hath  overwhelmed  the  sufferer,  or  '  wraps 
him  round  '  like  an  icy  pall.  Compare  the  description  culminating 
in  '  horror '  in  Isa.  xxi.  3,  4. 

6-8.  He  would  fain  escape,  but  clearly  cannot,  since  he  longs 
for  a  bird's  wings  to  carry  him  far  from  the  strifes  of  men.  The 
dove  mentioned  here  is  the  wild  rock-dove — the  original  stock 
from  which  tamer  varieties  of  turtle-dove  and  pigeon  are  derived 
—which  builds  in  the  steep  cliffs  overlooking  the  wadys,  always 
far  from  the  abodes  of  men.  Compare  '  the  covert  of  the  steep 
place '  as  the  home  of  the  dove  in  Cant.  ii.  14.  It  is  capable  of 
both  swift  and  long  flights.  The  '  lodge  in  the  wilderness  '  would 
furnish  him  with  the  two  things  he  most  desires — solitude  and 
security.  The  *  storm  '  from  which  he  seeks  to  escape  is,  of  course, 
the  turmoil  of  angry  and  violent  men,  verses  9-11. 


THE  PSALMS  55.  9-13  275 

Destroy,  O  Lord,  and  divide  their  tongue :  9 

For  I  have  seen  violence  and  strife  in  the  city. 

Day  and  night  they  go  about  it  upon  the  walls  thereof:     10 

Iniquity  also  and  mischief  are  in  the  midst  of  it. 

Wickedness  is  in  the  midst  thereof:  11 

Oppression  and  guile  depart  not  from  her  streets. 

For  it  was  not  an  enemy  that  reproached  me ;  12 

Then  I  could  have  borne  it : 

Neither  was  it  he  that  hated  me  that  did  magnify  himself 

against  me  \ 
Then  I  would  have  hid  myself  from  him : 
But  it  was  thou,  a  man  mine  equal,  13 

My  companion,  and  my  familiar  friend. 

9-11.  The  thought  of  these  prompts  him  to  sudden  wrath.  But 
the  vehement  prayer  which  bursts  from  the  Psalmist's  hps  is  not 
that  the  men  thifemselves  should  be  destroyed,  but  rather  that  their 
machinations  may  be  overthrown.  '  Bring  them  to  nought,  O 
Lord,  and  confuse  their  tongues,'  perhaps  with  an  allusion  to  Babel 
(^Gen.  xi.  5).  Their  devices  are  characterized  by  (i)  violence  and 
strife,  verse  9 ;  (2)  iniquity  and  mischief,  verse  10  ;  (3) 
wickedness,  fraud,  and  guile,  verse  11.  When  such  dire  and 
ominous  shapes  stalk  about  the  city,  what  can  the  good  citizen 
desire  but  that  they  should  be  speedily  and  entirely  banished  ? 
When  such  a  tower  is  being  built  to  defy  high  heaven,  what  better 
can  happen  than  that  the  tongues  of  the  builders  should  be 
confounded  and  their  pretentious  structure  brought  to  nought  ? 

12.  The  rapid  transition  from  the  singular  to  the  plural,  or  the 
plural  to  the  singular,  in  the  Psalmist's  denunciation  of  his 
enemies  meets  us  often.  It  may  be  sometimes  a  form  of  speech 
only,  the  many  being  represented  as  one,  or  the  one  viewed  as 
leading  many  others  in  his  train.  Sometimes,  however — as  in 
this  case— the  language  is  so  strong  and  personal  that  it  is  quite 
clear  the  Psalmist  has  an  individual  foe  in  mind  whose  aggravated 
treachery  makes  him  forget  all  others  in  comparison. 

The  tenses  here  should  be  rendered  as  presents  :  '  For  it  is  not 
an  enemy  that  revileth  me  ;  that  I  could  bear  :  neither  is  it  one 
who  hateth,  &c.  .  .  .  But — thou  ! ' 

13, 14.  This  false  friend  was  an  equal  in  rank  and  position,  lit. 
one  according  to  my  price  or  valuation  ;  and  what  was  more,  a 
companion  or  associate ;  further  still,  au  intimate  firiend ;  and, 

T    2 


276  THE    PSALMS  55.  14-18 

14  We  took  sweet  counsel  together, 

We  walked  in  the  house  of  God  with  the  throng. 

15  Let  death  come  suddenly  upon  them, 
Let  them  go  down  alive  into  the  pit : 

For  wickedness  is  in  their  dwelling,  in  the  midst  of  them. 

16  As  for  me,  I  will  call  upon  God ; 
And  the  Lord  shall  save  me. 

17  Evening,  and  morning,  and  at  noonday,  will  I  complain, 

and  moan : 
And  he  shall  hear  my  voice. 
i8  He  hath  redeemed  my  soul  in  peace  from  the  battle  that 
was  against  me : 

closest  and  most  tender  bond  of  all,  one  who  had  worshipped 
with  the  Psalmist  and  shared  his  confidence  in  spiritual  ex- 
periences, admitted  to  the  inmost  and  most  sacred  chambers  of 
his  heart.  That  such  a  man  should  not  only  betray  a  personal 
friend,  but  join  the  company  of  the  wicked  and  taunt  and  slander 
the  loyal  follower  of  Jehovah,  seemed  assuredly  the  most  cruel 
outrage  of  all,  and  this  awakens  the  Psalmist's  fierce  and  just 
indignation. 

15.  The  plural  recurs:  *thou'  becomes  them.  The  impreca- 
tion is  levelled  against  all  the  caitiff  crew  of  whom  this  man  is 
but  one  egregious  specimen.  All  are  false  to  God  and  truth,  and 
the  Old  Testament  saint  ruthlessly  prays  that,  like  Korah  and 
his  companions,  they  may  be  swallowed  up  alive,  be  suddenly 
destroyed  and  that  without  remedy.  Such  sudden  and  complete 
destruction  is  desired,  not  in  a  spirit  of  cruelty,  but  as  an  assured 
mark  of  Divine  visitation. 

16.  Another  abrupt  transition  ;  the  storm  which  sprang  up 
suddenly  in  verse  9  subsides  as  suddenly.  The  Psalmist  with- 
draws into  the  sanctuary,  the  pavilion  in  which  God  hides  His 
own  servants  from  the  strife  of  tongues.  The  name  Yahweh 
is  used,  as  well  as  the  characteristic  Elohim  which  prevails  in 
Book  II.     See  liv.  6. 

17.  Evening,  and  morning,  for  the  Jewish  day  begins  with 
sunset;  *at  noon,'  as  representing  all  that  lies  between  morning 
and  evening.  The  Psalmist  will  reiterate  his  prayer,  for  his 
enemies  repeat  their  attacks;  he  will  pray  continually,  for 
his  peril  is  incessant. 

18.  The  last  clause  of  the  last  verse.  'Then  he  heareth  my 
voice,'  and  the  tense  in  this,  •  He  hath  delivered,'  both  represent 


THE    PSALMS  55.  19,  20  277 

For  they  were  many  that  strove  with  me. 

God  shall  hear,  and  answer  them,  19 

Even  he  that  abideth  of  old,  [Selah 

The  men  who  have  no  changes, 

And  who  fear  not  God. 

He  hath  put  forth  his  hands  against  such  as  were  at  peace  20 

with  him : 
He  hath  profaned  his  covenant. 


that  as  accomplished  which  the  Psalmist  only  anticipates  in  the 
assurance  of  faith.  '  He  shall  assuredly  set  free  my  soul  that  they 
come  not  nigh  me,  for  they  are  many  that  strive  against  me ' 
would  give  the  idea  better  to  an  English  reader. 

19.  In  the  former  part  of  this  verse,  'aflflict'  (marg.)  is  better 
than  R.  V.  text,  answer.  The  latter  must  mean,  requite  them 
according  to  that  which  God  knows  to  be  their  character.  The 
second  line  should  run,  *  Even  he  that  sitteth  King  from  of  old.' 

The  latter  part  of  the  verse  is  difficult.  The  Selali  seems 
misplaced,  and  many  critics  would  alter  the  text ;  Cheyne  con- 
siders this  and  the  following  verses  to  form  a  fragment  of  another 
Psalm. 

Taking  the  text  as  it  stands,  and  following  the  improved 
punctuation  of  R.  V.,  what  are  we  to  understand  by  chaugfes? 
Either  (i)  the  moral  change  of  reformation — but  the  word  does 
not  properly  mean  this,  and  the  singular  would  surely  have  been 
used  ;  or  (2)  vicissitudes,  changes  of  fortune,  for  lack  of  which 
these  men  are  at  ease  and  godless — but  the  word  is  not  elsewhere 
found  in  this  sense  ;  or  (3)  relief,  as  a  watchman  or  patrol  is 
relieved  at  intervals  from  mounting  guard — these  men  go  on 
uninterruptedly  in  their  wickedness.  Of  these  alternative  mean- 
ings the  last  is  the  best,  but  it  must  be  allowed  that  no  one  is 
free  from  objection,  and  the  text  is  probably  corrupt. 

A  slight  change  would  enable  us  to  render,  '  Men  who  have  no 
faithfulness,'  who  do  not  know  the  meaning  of  good  faith — which 
fits  the  context  exactly.  Of  various  emendations  suggested,  this 
is  the  easiest  and  most  satisfactory. 

20.  The  transition  here  is  somewhat  awkward,  and  it  has  been 
proposed  to  place  this  verse  after  14  (Hupfeld).  If  smoothness 
of  construction  be  the  determining  consideration,  doubtless  the 
connexion  of  thought  is  thus  made  much  easier.  But  there  is 
significance  and  force  in  the  very  wanderings  and  alternations  of 
the  Psalmist's  thoughts,  as  he  passes  without  warning  from  the 
thought  of  his  own  nest  in  the  rock  to  a  prayer  for  his  enemies' 


^78  THE    PSALMS  55.  21-23 

21  His  mouth  was  smooth  as  butter, 
But  his  heart  was  war : 

His  words  were  softer  than  oil, 
Yet  were  they  drawn  swords. 

22  Cast  thy  burden  upon  the  Lord,  and  he  shall  sustain  thee : 
He  shall  never  suffer  the  righteous  to  be  moved. 

23  But  thou,  O  God,  shalt  bring  them  down  into  the  pit  of 

destruction : 
Bloodthirsty  and  deceitful  men  shall  not  live  out  half  their 

days; 
But  I  will  trust  in  thee. 


destruction  (verse  9),  or  from  the  fierce  indignation  which  would 
devour  them  alive  to  his  own  quiet  waiting  for  Jehovah  (verse  16). 
And  as  in  verse  15  he  passes  from  the  single  traitor  to  the  many 
foes,  so  here  he  turns  from  the  godlessness  of  the  many  back  to 
the  base  treachery  of  the  one  chief  offender. 

covenant :  i.  e.  with  man,  but  such  desecration  of  friendship 
may  well  be  spoken  of  in  religious  terms  as  an  offence  against  all 
natural  piety. 

21.  The  translation  of  R.  V.  is  much  more  vigorous  than  A.  V., 
and  truer  to  the  original.  The  Hebrew  says  his  heart  was  war, 
as  in  Ps.  cix.  4  w^e  read  *  I  am  prayer.' 

22.  Another  rapid  transition,  introducing  the  last  stanza.  The 
words  Cast  thy  hurden  may  be  understood  as  spoken  to  the 
Psalmist,  or  of  the  Psalmist  as  addressing  himself;  if  he,  as  in 
some  other  cases  (xxxiv.  3,  4,  11,  &c.),  is  giving  advice  to  others, 
the  change  of  note  is  very  marked. 

burden  well  conveys  the  general  meaning  here,  though  it  is 
hardly  an  accurate  translation.  The  LXX  renders  'care';  but 
*  lot '  or  '  condition '  gives  the  sense  of  the  word  better.  A 
similar  meaning  is  reached*  by  understanding  it  not  as  a  noun 
but  as  part  of  a  verb,  see  R.  V.  marg.,  'that  which  he  hath  given 
thee,'  Compare  the  distinction  between  the  two  words  for 
'burden'  in  Gal.  vi.  2,  5.  This  is  the  latter  kind  of  burden, 
which  every  man  must  carry  for  himself,  and  it  is  not  said  that 
God  will  relieve  the  bearer  of  his  load,  but  that  He  will  sustain 
him  under  its  weight. 

23.  After  so  gracious  a  promise,  precious  to  N.  T.  believers 
as  well  as  to  O.  T.  saints,  comes  an  anticipation  of  vengeance 
from  which  the  disciples  of  Christ  shrink.  The  Psalmist's  words, 
however,fairly  correspond  to  the  Christian  anticipation  of  righteous 


THE   PSALMS  56.  i  279 

For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  set  to  Jonath  elem  rehokim.     A  Psalm    56 
of  David  :  Michtam  :  when  the  Philistines  took  him  in  Gath. 

Be  merciful  unto  me,  O  God ;  for  man  would  swallow  me  i 
up: 

retribution  at  the  day  of  judgement.  The  life  of  *  men  of  blood ' 
shall  be  cut  short,  he  says,  as  a  token  that  God  is  against  them 
and  will  visit  them  with  a  kind  of  punishment  which  will  make 
manifest  the  fact.     See  Prov.  x.  27. 

The  closing  words  only  exhibit  the  oth^r  side  of  the  same 
shield.  Just  as  he  who  trusts  in  Jehovah  is  safe,  so  he  who 
defies  Jehovah  must  be  made  to  suffer,  and  be  seen  and  known  to 
suffer,  and  that  not  by  'the  common  death  of  all  rnen,'  or  'the 
visitation  of  all  men,'  Num.  x.  29.  So  Jeremiah  says  'he  that 
getteth  riches,  and  not  by  right ;  in  the  midst  of  his  days  they 
shall  leave  him,  and  at  his  end  he  shall  be  a  fool,'  xvii.  11.  '  But 
as  for  me,  I  take  refuge  in  thee.' 

Psalm  LVI.  Faith  Victorious  over  Fear.,  - ':',;Hi 
This  and  the  following  Psalm  form  companion  pictures.  In 
style,  in  structure,  and  in  theme  they  are  similar,  and  have  been 
esteemed  by  good  judges  as  amongst  the  most  beautiful  in  the 
Psalter.  They  both  belong  to  a  '  Davidic  *  collection,  and  this  one 
is  assigned  in  the  title  to  the  period  of  Saul's  persecution  when 
David  took  refuge  with  the  Philistines  in  Gath,  esteeming  himself 
safer  with  the  hereditary  foes  of  Israel  than  with  the  king  who 
ought  to  have  been  his  friend  and  protector.  The  phrase  of  the 
title,  '  When  the  Philistines  took  him  in  Gath,'  appears  to  be  in- 
consistent with  the  statement  of  the  history  that  David  '  fled ' 
and  went  unto  'the  king  of  Gath.'  There  is  no  necessary  dis- 
crepancy, as  it  is  clear  that  when  David's  identity  was  discovered 
he  was  obliged  to  feign  madness,  and  he  must  have  been  more  or 
less  of  a  prisoner.  Still,  as  in  Ps.  xxxiv,  which  is  referred  to  the 
same  period,  the  substitution  of  '  Abimelech  '  for  Achish  awakens 
some  suspicion,  so  the  phraseology  of  this  title  suggests  a  com- 
paratively late  date  and  a  lack  of  complete  acquaintance  with  the 
history.  Modern  critics  refer  the  Psalm  to  the  period  of  Jeremiah  or 
later.  The  fact  that  the  Targum  contains  a  preface  describing  the 
Psalm  as  one  '  concerning  the  congregation  of  Israel'  shows  that  in 
very  early  times  different  views  of  the  Psalms  prevailed,  and  the 
same  words  are  applied,  now  to  David  in  Gath,  now  to  the  nation 
oppressed  by  its  enemies.  Thus  variously  have  these  sacred  lyrics 
been  understood  and  used  in  all  ages,  and  whilst  the  probabilities 
are  decidedly  against  the  Davidic  authorship  of  this  Psalm,  there  is 
nothing  in  its  contents  inconsistent  with  his  experiences  as,  time 


28o  THE   PSALMS  56.  2,  3 

All  the  day  long  he  fighting  oppresseth  me. 

2  Mine  enemies  would  swallow  me  up  all  the  day  long : 
For  they  be  many  that  fight  proudly  against  me. 

3  What  time  I  am  afraid, 

I  will  put  my  trust  in  thee. 

and  again,  either  amongst  Philistines  in  Gath  or  sheltering  from 
Saul  in  the  recesses  of  a  cave,  his  faith  triumphed  over  his  natural 
and  inevitable  fears. 

The  words  Jonath  elem  rehokiiu  are  explained  in  R.  V.  marg. 
The  change  in  vocalization  necessary  for  the  translation  <  The  dove 
of  the  distant  terebinths '  is  very  slight,  and  it  may  be  understood 
that  this  is  the  name  of  the  melody  to  which  the  Psalm  was  sung 
by  the  choir.  Both  LXX  and  Targum  give  a  kind  of  mystical 
interpretation  of  the  w^ords.  The  LXX  renders,  *  For  the  people 
far  removed  from  the  sanctuary,'  and  the  Targum  compares  the 
nation  to  '  a  silent  dove,  when  they  were  far  from  their  cities  and 
turned  again  and  praised  the  Lord  of  the  world.'  For  the  term 
Mich  tain,  which  has  been  translated  'an  inscription,'  *  an  epi- 
grammatic writing,'  and  *  a  golden  Psalm,'  see  Introd.  p.  16,  com- 
pare also  Ps.  xvi. 

The  structure  of  the  Psalm  is  simple  and  effective.  There  are 
three  stanzas,  1-4,  5-11,  and  12,  13  ;  the  two  former  ending  with 
a  refrain,  '  In  God  I  will  praise  his  word,  I  will  not  fear,'  &c. 
The  progress  of  feeling  in  which  faith  gradually  wins  its  victory 
is  delicately  and  aptly  brought  to  a  climax  in  words  which  express 
complete  devotion  to  God's  service. 

1.  Render,  '  Be  gracious  unto  me.'  The  contrast  is  drawn 
between  God  in  His  might  and  'frail  man,'  for  the  word  used 
carries  this  connotation.  These  human  foes  are  formidable  enough 
to  the  Psalmist.  They  '  gape,'  like  the  jaws  of  a  wild  beast  ready 
to  swallow  its  prey,  they  '  contend,'  they  do  their  best  to  '  crush' 
him  to  the  earth,  such  is  the  literal  meaning  of  the  three  words  found 
in  this  verse.     But  in  the  sight  of  God  they  are  but  feeble  men. 

2.  Twice  is  the  phrase  repeated,  all  the  day  long :  and  this 
verse  adds  the  fact  that  the  foes  are  many  in  number  and  haughty 
in  demeanour.  The  word  rendered  in  A.  V.  '  O  thou  most  High,* 
refers  to  the  enemies,  as  in  R.  V.  proudly,  lit,  '  from  on  high.' 
The  expression  shows  how  superior  the  Psalmist's  adversaries 
were  to  him  in  position  and  advantages ;  but  the  balance  is 
far  more  than  redressed  by  the  single  phrase  '  God  is  for  me ' 
(verse  9). 

3.  Kirkpatrick  notes  that  '  David's  sojourn  in  Gath  is  the  only 
occasion  on  which  he  is  recorded  to  have  been  afraid  of  man,' 
See  I  Sam.  xxi.  rs,  though  in  Ps.  xviii,  4  we  read  '  the  floods  of 


THE   PSALMS  56.  4-6  281 

In  God  I  will  praise  his  word : 

In  God  have  I  put  my  trust,  I  will  not  be  afraid ; 

What  can  flesh  do  unto  me  ? 

All  the  day  long  they  wrest  my  words : 

All  their  thoughts  are  against  me  for  evil. 

They  gather  themselves  together,  they  hide  themselves, 

They  mark  my  steps, 

Even  as  they  have  waited  for  my  soul. 

ungodliness  made  me  afraid.'  In  this  verse  fear  is  not  positively 
asserted,  the  force  of  the  tense  is  that  of  the  subjunctive  mood  in 
Latin,  '  In  the  day,  or  at  the  time,  when  fear  (may)  assail  me.' 
On  the  other  hand,  it  is  not  excluded,  as  if  the  Psalmist  had  said 
*  In  case  I  should,'  or  '  If  it  should  happen  that  I  were  afraid.' 

Fear  and  faith  may  co-exist,  but  one  must  conquer.  Victory 
rests  with  the  devout  will,  strengthened  by  earnest  prayer. 

4.  In  this  verse  the  victory  begins  to  be  realized  ;  prayer  has 
preceded  (verse  i),  praise  follows.  Faith  has  begun  to  do  its 
work,  'In  God  have  I  taken  refuge,'  and  fear  has  so  far  been  over- 
come that  the  Psalmist  can  say  I  will  not  be  afraid.  But  he  is 
still  reasoning  down  the  natural  tremors  of  his  lower  self.  A.  V. 
represents  him  as  having  no  hesitation,  but  the  form  of  the  question 
should  be  preserved  as  in  R.  V.,  Wliat  can  (mere  mortal)  flesh 
do  unto  me  ? 

The  twice-repeated  clause.  In  God,  shows  that  whether  faith  is 
being  exercised  or  thanksgiving  offered,  the  strength  of  grace  is 
the  upholding  energy.  Such  a  phrase  as  this  anticipates  the  New 
Testament  usage  of  '  in  Christ.' 

5.  Second  strophe.  The  word  'strophe'  here  exactly  repre- 
sents the  movement,  for  the  Psalmist  returns  upon  his  own  steps 
to  his  first  position  and  travels  once  more  along  a  new  curve  to 
the  exultant  phrase  of  the  refrain. 

5,  6.  A  fresh  description  of  the  perils  which  for  the  third  time 
are  described  as  lasting  all  the  day  long,  so  that  the  Psalmist  never 
feels  himself  safe.  This  time  fraud  is  more  in  evidence  than 
violence.  Slander  is  employed,  plots  abound,  his  foes  are  active. 
They  scheme,  they  gather,  they  hide,  they  watch — all  with  a  view 
to  their  victim's  life.  The  successive  clauses  give  a  graphic 
picture  of  the  dangers  which  beset  a  man  who,  like  David  at  the 
court  of  Achish.  or  Jeremiah  during  part  of  his  life,  lived  in  an 
atmosphere  of  suspicion.  If  understood  of  a  nation,  the  words 
must  be  understood  metaphorically  and  are  not  so  suitable,  though 
there  have  been  periods  when  the  Jew  as  such  has  been  similarl}'^ 
suspected  and  beset. 


2i?2  THE   PSALMS  56.  7-9 

7  Shall  they  escape  by  iniquity? 

In  anger  cast  down  the  peoples,  O  God. 

8  Thou  tellest  my  wanderings  : 

Put  thou  my  tears  into  thy  bottle ; 
Are  they  not  in  thy  book? 

9  Then   shall   mine  enemies  turn  back  in  the  day  that 

I  call : 
This  I  know,  that  God  is  for  me. 


f.  According  to  the  present  text  R.  V.  has  given  the  best  trans- 
lation, by  iniquity,  meaning  '  in  their  iniquity,  gross  as  it  is.'  Is 
it  to  be  thought  that  iniquity,  just  because  it  is  high-handed,  shall 
bring  them  off  scathless  ?  A  very  slight  change  in  a  letter  would 
give  the  meaning  *  Requite  them  according  to  their  iniquity,' 
a  much  easier  reading,  grammatically  and  every  way. 

Note  R.  V.  peoples  :  one  of  many  cases  in  which  A.  V.  '  people' 
is  altogether  misleading.  The  Psalmist  anticipates  the  judgement 
of  the  God  of  the  whole  earth  on  the  nations  outside  Israel,  and 
this  fact  is  not  favourable  to  the  theory  of  Davidic  authorship. 

8.  my  wandering's.  A  pathetic  touch,  whether  the  reader 
thinks  of  David,  or  of  Jeremiah,  or  of  exiles  in  Babylon,  or  of  the 
vagrant  traveller  in  the  journey  of  life.  Alternative  renderings 
suggested,  'inward  agitation'  or  'my  moaning,'  are  both  un- 
suitable. God  counts  every  step  and  turn  in  the  road  taken  by 
the  hunted  wanderer  ;  every  tear  he  sheds  is  treasured  like  the 
water  in  the  skin-bottle,  sometimes  so  precious  that  the  traveller 
reckons  up  the  few  drops  that  remain  ;  every  sigh  and  sorrow  is 
recorded  in  the  book  which  notes  all  and  never  errs. 

The  Psalmist  knows  these  things,  and  yet  he  prays  that  God 
will  mark  and  take  count  of  his  griefs.  The  proposed  rendering, 
'My  tears  are  put,'  is  tame  in  comparison  with  the  text,  which 
passes  from  confidence  to  petition  and  back  to  confidence  again. 
The  Divine  book  is  spoken  of  chiefly  as  a  record  of  those  who  are 
dear  to  God  and  cared  for  by  Him  :  compare  Exod.  xxxii.  32,  '  blot 
me  out  of  thy  book'  ;  Mai.  iii.  i6,  17,  'a  book  of  remembrance  for 
them  that  feared  Jehovah,'  &c. 

9.  More  positive  assurance  is  expressed  than  has  as  yet  been 
reached,  faith  passes  into  knowledge.  The  verse  opens  with  an 
emphatic  word  Then,  as  if  the  finger  pointed  to  the  very  time  and 
place  of  the  overthrow  in  question.  Further,  the  Psalmist  is  able 
to  say  This  1  know :  and  lastly,  he  asserts  definitely  God  is  for 
me.  R.  V.  marg.  '  for  '  is  perhaps  to  be  preferred  to  the  text, 
that,  though  both  renderings  lead  to  the  same  point  in  the  end. 


THE   PSALMS  56.  10.13  2S3 

In  God  will  I  praise  his  word  :  10 

In  the  Lord  will  I  praise  his  word. 

In  God  have  I  put  my  trust,  I  will  not  be  afraid ;  1 1 

What  can  man  do  unto  me  ? 

Thy  vows  are  upon  me,  O  God :  12 

I  will  render  thank  offerings  unto  thee. 

For  thou  hast  delivered  my  soul  from  death :  13 

Hast  thou  not  delivered  my  feet  from  falling  ? 

That  i  may  walk  before  God 

In  the  light  of  the  hving. 


10,  11.  The  refrain  is  here  repeated  with  two  slight  changes. 
One  is  that  the  first  line,  In  Qod  will  Z  praise  his  word,  is 
reiterated,  with  the  name  Yahweh  substituted  for  Elohim.  Some 
critics  attribute  this  change  to  the  revision  of  a  Yahwistic  text  by 
an  Elohist  editor.  If  it  be  an  unintentional  corruption  the  em- 
phasis thus  introduced  is  appropriate  and  impressive.  The  other 
variation  is  the  substitution  of  man  for  •  flesh,'  of  course  without 
change  of  meaning. 

12,  13.  The  last  stanza  brings  the  Psalm  to  a  close  in  the 
practical  fashion  characteristic  of  a  truly  devout  spirit.  It  is 
written  from  the  standpoint  of  deliverance  already  accomplished. 
Thy  vows  means  vows  made  to  God,  obligations  incurred  by  the 
Psalmist,  who  is  ready  to  fulfil  in  his  prosperity  promises  made  in 
the  time  of  his  need. 

Two  kinds  of  acknowledgement  are  mentioned :  thank 
offering's,  according  to  R.  V.,  which  means  sacrifices  over  and 
above  such  as  the  law  demands — or  perhaps  '  thanksgivings,'  and 
loyal  obedience  to  God's  commands  in  the  days  that  are  to 
come. 

The  second  line  of  verse  13,  Hast  thou  not  delivered  my  feet 
from  fallingr?  is  a  question  onl}'  in  appearance.  In  realit}'  it 
contains  a  strong  affirmation  ;  thus  Delitzsch  renders,  '  Yea,  and 
my  feet  from  falling.'  R.  V.  indicates  this,  while  it  retains  the 
more  literal  translation,  by  placing  the  note  of  interrogation  after 
'falling.' 

The  object  of  the  greater  and  the  lesser  deliverance  which  God 
has  accomplished  for  the  Psalmist,  viz.  the  preservation  of  his  life 
and  the  sustaining  of  the  active  powers  of  life,  is  that  he  may 
henceforth  employ  all  his  faculties  in  God's  service  and  walk  in  the 
light  of  His  countenance,  'till  travelling  days  are  done.' 


284  THE   PSALMS  57.  i 

57      for  the  Chief  Musician ;  set  to  Al-tashheth.    A  Psalm  of  David  : 
Michtam  :  when  he  fled  from  Saul,  in  the  cave. 

I  Be  merciful  unto  me,  O  God,  be  merciful  unto  me ; 
For  my  soul  taketh  refuge  in  thee : 
Yea,  in  the  shadow  of  thy  wings  will  I  take  refuge, 
Until  these  calamities  be  overpast. 

Psalm  LVII.     Confidence  in  Danger. 

This  Psalm  should  be  carefully  compared  with  the  preceding. 
Not  only  are  the  tone  and  spirit  of  the  two  identical,  but  the 
occurrence  of  a  refrain  at  the  end  of  each  of  the  two  chief  divisions 
of  the  Psalm  is  common  to  both,  as  are  certain  phrases  repeated 
in  both.  In  this  instance,  however,  the  danger  is  less  and  the 
confidence  greater.  The  closing  verses  of  Ps.  Ivii  strike  a  much 
higher  note  of  triumph  than  is  reached  in  any  part  of  Ps.  Ivi. 

The  inscription  refers  the  Psalm  to  David,  '  when  he  fled  from 
Saul,  in  the  cave.'  It  is  not  clear  whether  this  means,  as  the  LXX 
understands  it,  '  into  the  cave.'  If  so,  the  reference  is  probablj' 
to  the  caveof  Adullam,  a  few  miles  from  Hebron,  see  i  Sam.  xxii. 
I.  The  more  appropriate  reference,  however,  would  be  to  the 
well-known  incident  when  David  spared  Saul's  life  in  the  cave  at 
En-gedi,  on  the  west  of  the  Dead  Sea,  i  Sam.  xxiv.  3  ;  but  the  very 
general  language  of  the  Psalm  contains  nothing  decisive  as  to 
occasion  or  authorship.  The  latter  verses  of  the  Psalm  are  found 
again  in  Book  V,  as  part  of  Ps.  cviii,  but  as  that  Psalm  is  com- 
posite and  its  text  inferior,  we  shall  be  safe  in  concluding  that 
they  are  found  here  in  their  original  setting. 

For  the  meaning  of  Michtam  and  Al-tashheth,  'Destroy  not,' 
see  Introd.  p.  16.  The  usually  received  conjecture  is  that  these 
are  the  opening  words  of  a  vintage-song  (see  Isa.  Ixv.  8),  to  the 
melody  of  which  the  Psalm  was  to  be  sung. 

1.  Be  merciful:  rather,  *  Be  gracious.' 
taketh  refasfe:  better,  'hath  taken  refuge,' marking  the  ground 
of  the  Psalmist's  claim.  'Sanctuary  '  will  not  be  refused  to  this 
fugitive  from  persecution.  Further,  he  who  has  found  in  God  a  safe 
hiding-place  in  the  past  resolves  that  he  will  still  take  shelter  in  the 
same  secure  refuge,  described  as  the  shadow  of  thy  wingrs*  The 
same  figure  is  found  some  eight  or  ten  times  elsewhere  in  the 
Psalms. 

Instead  of  calamities  R.  V.  marg.  gives  '  wickednesses,'  but 
the  word,  which  means  literally  '  destructions,*  conveys  rather  the 
idea  of  '  destructive  storm.'  Driver  renders  *  engulfing  ruin  ' ; 
P. B. V.  gives  the  picturesque  paraphrase  'until  this  t3'rann3'  be 
overpast. ' 


THE   PSALMS  57.  2-4  285 

I  will  cry  unto  God  Most  High ;  2 

Unto  God  that  performeth  a//  thifigs  for  me. 

He  shall  send  from  heaven,  and  save  me,  3 

Wheti  he  that  would  swallow  me  up  reproacheth  \  [Selah 

God  shall  send  forth  his  mercy  and  his  truth. 

My  soul  is  among  Hons ;  4 

I  lie  among  them  that  are  set  on  fire, 

Even  the  sons  of  men,  whose  teeth  are  spears  and  arrows, 

And  their  tongue  a  sharp  sword. 

2.  Three  names  of  God  are  combined  here  :  Elohim,  the  general 
name  of  Deity,  characteristic  of  this  book  ;  'Elyon,  Most  High,  the 
Ruler  of  all ;  and  El,  the  strong  God,  who  is  described  as  *  He 
who  achieveth  for  me ' — no  object  to  the  verb  being  expressed. 
All  that  ought  to  be  done,  all  that  need  be  done,  all  that  can  rightly 
be  done,  God  '  performs '  for  His  servant. 

3.  When  he  that  would  swallow  xue  up  reproacheth  :  only 
two  words  in  the  Hebrew,  represented  by  eight  in  English.  The 
terseness  of  the  expression  occasions  some  difficult}'.  A.  V.  marg., 
following  LXX  and  Jerome,  makes  God  the  subject :  '  He,  i.  e.  God, 
reproacheth  him  who  would  crush  me,'  so  also  Cheyne  who 
translates  '  giveth  them  to  dishonour ' — but  God  is  not  said  thus 
to  'reproach'  men.  In  R.V.  the  word  'reproacheth'  has  no 
object :  either  God  or  God's  servant  is  to  be  understood.  A 
better  translation  would  be,  'For  he  who  pants  for  my  life  hath 
blasphemed,'  i.  e.  has  blasphemously  defied  God,  denying  His 
ability  or  willingness  to  help,  and  thus  rendered  the  clause  gives 
briefly  and  parenthetically  the  ground  of  the  Psalmist's  assurance 
that  God  will  interpose  on  his  behalf. 

The  first  clause  of  the  verse.  He  shall  send  from  heaven,  is 
completed  in  the  last  line,  and  the  object  of  the  verb  '  send  ' 
is  supplied.  Two  radiant  angels,  Lovingkindness  and  Truth,  are 
to  be  dispatched  on  a  mission  of  deliverance,  one  to  which  God's 
mercy  and  faithfulness  are  equally  pledged.  Compare  the  mention 
of  '  light  and  truth  '  in  Ps.  xliii.  3. 

If  the  Selah  in  this  verse  implies  an  interval,  it  occurs  awk- 
wardly.    In  LXX  it  is  found  at  the  end  of  verse  2. 

4.  A  difficulty  arises  as  to  the  meaning  of  X  lie.  The  part  of 
the  verb  used  forbids  us  to  understand  it  in  the  sense  of  the  simple 
indicative  present,  hence  R.  V.  marg.  gives  '  I  must  lie.'  This  is 
not,  however,  the  proper  meaning  of  the  '  cohortative  '  in  Hebrew, 
nor  does  it  well  fit  the  context.  Che^-ne  suggests  the  emendation, 
'My  soul  hath  dwelt,'  but  taking  the  text  as  it  stands,  we  should 


386  THE   PSALMS  57.  5^8 

5  Be  thou  exalted,  O  God,  above  the  heavens ; 
Let  thy  glory  be  above  all  the  earth. 

6  They  have  prepared  a  net  for  my  steps ; 
My  soul  is  bowed  down  : 

They  have  digged  a  pit  before  me ; 

They  are  fallen  into  the  midst  thereof  themselves.  [Selah 
1  My  heart  is  fixed,  O  God,  my  heart  is  fixed : 

I  will  sing,  yea,  I  will  sing  praises. 
8  Awake  up,  my  glory ;  awake,  psaltery  and  harp  : 

I  myself  will  awake  right  early. 


agree  with  Delitzsch,  Kirkpatrick  and  others  who  find  in  the  clause 
an  expression  of  confidence.  Hence  the  meaning  would  be  *  I 
will  lie,'  'I  will  take  my  rest  even  among  fire-breathing  foes,' 
secure  in  the  presence  of  Him  who  sends  His  angels  to  guard  me 
(Ps.  xxxiv.  7). 

5.  A  noble  refrain,  appearing  here  somev/hat  abruptly,  unless 
the  connexion  with  verse  3  be  closely  preserved,  verse  4  being 
understood  in  the  sense  just  explained.  In  this  ascription  of 
praise  may  also  perhaps  be  included  the  prayer  that  God  would 
assert  His  majesty  and  '  take  to  Himself  His  great  glory '  in  the 
overthrow  of  the  above-named  savage  enemies. 

6.  Again,  after  the  refrain,  as  in  Ps.  Ivi,  the  Psalmist  recurs  to 
the  actual  situation.  The  perfects  in  the  first  three  lines  refer 
to  past  events,  but  in  the  last  line  They  are  fallen  expresses  the 
anticipation  of  faith.  The  Psalmist  is  not  yet  delivered,  according 
to  verses  i  and  4. 

In  the  second  line  the  LXX  probably  gives  the  correct  meaning, 
*  They  have  bowed  down  my  soul,'  and  if  so  this  line  also  is 
anticipatory — they  have  spread  their  nets,  and  already  see  me 
captive  and  humiliated  in  their  hands.  Then  the  surprise  of  the 
fourth  line  is  the  more  eff"ective  ;  instead  of  finding  the  victim  in 
the  pitfall,  they  lie  disgraced  and  helpless  in  the  midst  of  it 
themselves. 

7.  Lit.  '  Firm  is  my  heart,  O  God.'  In  li.  10  the  Psalmist  had 
prayed  for  a  firm,  a  steadfast  spirit ;  here  that  blessing  is  enjoyed. 
The  word  does  not  mean,  as  in  the  Vulgate  and  some  other  versions, 
'  ready '  ;  preparedness  results  from  steadfastness.  Staunch  in 
defence,  courageous  in  attack,  the  heart  that  is  fixed  is  ready  for 
any  event. 

8.  rigflit  early.     This  is  not  a  morning  hymn,  however  suitable 


THE   PSALMS  67.  9—58.  i  287 

I  will  give  thanks  unto  thee,  O  Lord,  among  the  peoples  :  9 

I  will  sing  praises  unto  thee  among  the  nations. 

For  thy  mercy  is  great  unto  the  heavens,  10 

And  thy  truth  unto  the  skies. 

Be  thou  exalted,  O  God,  above  the  heavens ;  1 1 

Let  thy  glory  be  above  all  the  earth. 

For  the  Chiet  Musician  ;  set  to  Al-tashheth.     A  Psalm  of  David  :  58 
Michtam, 

Do  ye  indeed  in  silence  speak  righteousness  ?  i 

for  Lauds  or  Matins.     The  Psalmist  simply  rallies  his  powers  for 
praise  and  active  service. 

my  glory :  i.  e.  my  soul,  myself.  In  the  second  line  render, 
with  R.  V.  marg.,  '  I  will  awake  the  dawn,'  will  anticipate  in  my 
thanksgiving  the  coming  of  the  morn  of  deliverance. 

For  psaltery  and  harp,  nehhel  and  kinnor,  see  on  Ps.  xxxiii.  2. 

9.  Again,  as  in  Ivi.  7,  we  find  an  allusion  to  the  nations  outside 
Israel,  such  as  does  not  actually  disprove  Davidic  authorship  but 
is  distinctly  unfavourable  to  it. 

10.  Almost  identical  v/ith  xxxvi.  ip,  but  particularly  appropriate 
here  after  the  mention  of  lovingkindness  and  truth  in  verse  3. 

11.  This  refrain  forms  the  keynote  of  the  Psalm  and  of  the 
Psalter.  Whether  David,  or  Jeremiah,  or  Israel,  or  a  humbler 
soul  be  the  suppliant  for  personal  succour,  every  Psalmist  longs 
for  this  consummation  of  the  glory  of  God,  and  finds  no  spot  of 
earth  too  lowly  but  that  from  it  he  may  soar  to  the  skies.  Exalt 
thyself,  O  God,  in  heaven  and  in  earth  and  above  both  :  Glona  in 
excelsis ! 

Psalm  LVIII.     Rebuke  of  Unjust  Judges. 

It  is  clear  that  this  Psalm  is  intended  to  denounce  those  who 
were  unrighteously  exercising  authority  and  perverting  justice. 
But  the  terms  are  not  sufficiently  explicit  for  us  to  be  sure  whether 
an  Israelite  is  protesting  against  foreign  domination,  or  remon- 
strating with  judges  and  persons  of  influence  in  his  own  nation 
who  were  abusing  their  lawful  position  and  offending  against  the 
covenant  of  Jehovah.  That  the  Psalm  cannot  be  referred  to 
David  appears  quite  certain.  Baethgen  and  others  are  equally 
sure  that  it  is  post-Exilic,  and  that  the  indignation  of  the  Psalmist 
has  been  aroused  by  the  violence  and  injustice  of  Babylonians  or 
Persians,  or  even  oppressors  of  a  later  period.  It  seems  to  us, 
for  reasons  which  will  be  more  fully  given  in  the  notes,  that  the 
period  to  which  the  Psalm  may  be  best  referred  is  that  of  the 


288  THE   PSALMS  58.  2,  3 

Do  ye  judge  uprightly,  O  ye  sons  of  men  ? 

2  Yea,  in  heart  ye  work  wickedness ; 

Ye  weigh  out  the  violence  of  your  hands  in  the  earth. 

3  The  wicked  are  estranged  from  the  womb : 

They  go  astray  as  soon  as  they  be  born,  speaking  lies. 


later  Monarchy.  Clearer  signs  would  be  given  than  are  here 
afforded  that  heathen  oppressors  are  intended,  were  the  protest 
against  these.  Psalm  Ixxxii,  which  is  very  similar  in  subject, 
should  be  carefully  compared  with  this. 

The  style  of  the  Psalm  is  original  and  forcible,  here  and  there 
to  the  point  of  obscurity.  It  opens  with  a  burst  of  indignation, 
verses  i  and  2  ;  the  evils  complained  of  are  specified,  3-5  ;  and 
the  urgent  prayer  or  confident  prophecy  of  verses  6-9  prepares 
for  the  anticipation  of  Divine  judgement,  10,  11.  For  Al-taslilietli 
and  Michtam  see  p.  16. 

1.  in  silence.  The  word  thus  translated  is  only  found  once 
elsewhere  in  O.  T.,  viz.  in  the  title  of  Ps.  Ivi,  in  a  phrase  itself 
very  doubtful.  A.  V.  translates  it  by  the  word  <  congregation,' 
a  meaning  now  generally  acknowledged  to  be  inadmissible. 
Other  versions  give  little  help,  LXX,  Jer.  and  Vulg.  rendering 
it  '  indeed,'  while  the  Syriac  omits  it  altogether.  R.  V.  marg. 
understands  the  word  as  meaning  that  righteousness  is  '  dumb  '  in 
the  mouths  of  these  unworthy  dispensers  of  justice.  Another  note 
in  the  margin  gives  an  alternative  reading,  obtained  by  a  very  slight 
change  in  the  vowel-points,  and  most  modern  critics  accept  this 
emendation.  The  verse  then  would  run,  *  Do  ye  indeed  speak 
righteousness,  O  ye  gods,  or,  O  ye  mighty  ones  ?  Do  ye  in  upright- 
ness judge  the  sons  of  men  ? '  The  term  '  gods  '  or  '  mighty  ones ' 
does  not  refer  to  angels  but  to  the  judges  who  in  Ps.  Ixxxii.  i,  6 
are  certainly  described  as  Elohim,  with  a  reference  to  Exod.  xxL  6, 
xxii.  8,  9,  28.  The  irony  implied  in  the  use  of  this  lofty  term  for 
judges  who  ought  to  consider  their  office  as  Divinely  given,  and  to 
exercise  jurisdiction  as  representatives  of  the  All-Righteous,  is 
bitter  and  telling. 

2.  We  might  expect  this  verse  to  begin  with  '  Nay'  ;  but  the 
thought  latent  in  the  Hebrew  particle  is,  *  So  far  from  doing  this, 
you  go  on  to  work  wickedness,  first  in  plan,  then  in  action.' 

weiffli  out :  a  technical  phrase  for  the  use  of  the  scales  of 
justice,  compare  Prov.  xvi.  11.  Perhaps,  with  Baethgen  and 
others,  we  should  read,  *  Your  hands  weigh  out  violence  in  the 
land* — that  which  is  solemnly  dispensed  in  your  courts  is  the 
precise  opposite  of  what  it  ought  to  be.     See  Isa.  vii.  7. 

3.  The  pei^verscness  in  question  is  traced  to  its  roots.     The 


THE    PSALMS  58.  4-7  289 

Their  poison  is  like  the  poison  of  a  serpent : 
They  are  like  the  deaf  adder  that  stoppeth  her  ear ; 
Which  hearkeneth  not  to  the  voice  of  charmers, 
Charming  never  so  wisely. 
Break  their  teeth,  O  God,  in  their  mouth : 
Break  out  the  great  teeth  of  the  young  lions,  O  Lord. 
Let  them  melt  away  as  water  that  runneth  apace : 
When  he  aimeth  his  arrows,  let  them  be  as  though  they 
were  cut  off. 


evil  act  springs  from  an  evil  heart,  one  that  in  the  very  bent  of  its 
nature  is  estranged  from  God,  His  covenant,  and  His  laws. 

4,  5.  The  first  of  a  number  of  striking  comparisons  by  means 
of  which  the  Psalmist  graphically  portraj'S  various  aspects  of  the 
evil-doing  of  these  wicked  men. 

They  are  like  the  serpent  in  two  respects  :  (i)  the  venom 
which  they  subtly  instil  into  the  veins  of  the  body  politic ; 
(2)  the  peculiar  callousness  and  obstinacy  which  is  characteristic 
of  one  particular  kind  of  serpent  only.  Most  snakes  yield  to  the 
arts  of  the  charmer  who  has  learned  to  control  these  intractable 
creatures  by  music  and  cries  of  his  own.  It  is  not  clear  what 
kind  of  serpent  is  intended  here  by  adder.  Probably  the 
Egyptian  cobra  is  intended,  the  *  aspic '  by  which  Cleopatra  took 
her  own  life,  akin  to  the  well-known  hooded  species,  Cobra  di 
capello.  Snakes  thus  inaccessible  to  the  charmer's  art  are 
mentioned  in  Jer.  viii.  17. 

6.  The  next  comparison  brings  out  the  violence  and  brutality 
of  men  who  will  stick  at  nothing  to  secure  their  ends.  The 
words,  great  teeth,  or  '  jaw  teeth,'  and  yoxing  lions,  emphasize 
the  force  and  ferocity  of  the  oppressors,  whose  utmost  power  can, 
however,  be  easily  broken  by  Omnipotence.  A  slight  change  in 
the  vowel-points  would  give  the  meaning  '  God  shall  break ' 
instead  of  '  Break  thou '  ;  this  would  be  more  in  harmony  with 
the  context  and  the  spirit  of  the  Psalm,  which  is  not  imprecatory, 
but  prophetic. 

7.  Two  more  comparisons  :  (i)  the  winter  torrent,  which  rises 
with  terrible  rapidity  and  does  great  mischief  for  a  short  time, 
and  then  disappears,  leaving  the  bed  of  the  stream  almost  dry ; 
(2)  arrows,  which  are  indeed  carefully  aimed  and  fitted  on  the 
string,  but  which  fall  pointless  and  ineffective,  as  if  an  unseen 
hand  had  broken  and  cut  them  off.  The  second  line  is  obscure 
in  phraseology,  but  the  general  meaning  is  clear.     It  is  better  to 

U 


290  THE    PSALMS  58.  8,  9 

8  Let    tJiem   be    as   a   snail    which    melteth   and   passeth 

away : 
Like  the  untimely  birth  of  a  woman,  that  hath  not  seen 
the  sun. 

9  Before  your  pots  can  feel  the  thorns, 

He  shall  take  them  away  with  a  whirlwind,  the  green  and 
the  burning  alike,     jr.dr  i>tj 

make  the  wicked  man  subject  of  'airneth,'  not  God,  as  in  some 
interpretations. 

These  clauses  are  best  read  as  futures — 'They  shall  be  as 
water,'  &c. ;   '  If  he  aim  his  arrows,  they  shall  be,'  &c. 

8.  Two  more  metaphors,  both  intended  to  indicate  the  gradual 
and  imperceptible  but  complete  disappearance  of  evil  men  and 
their  deeds.  The  snail  which  leaves  behind  it  a  slimy  track  and 
seems  to  waste  away  as  it  passes,  or  which  shrivels  up  in  its  shell 
under  the  fierce  heat  of  the  Eastern  sun,  furnishes  a  striking 
picture  such  as  Dante  loves,  the  whole  picture  condensed  into 
three  words.  The  offspring  of  a  premature  birth,  which  '  cometh 
in  vanity  and  departeth  in  darkness '  (Eccles.  vi.  4),  describes  the 
utter  futility  of  the  course  of  evil-doers.  However  powerful  these 
*  sons  of  the  mighty'  may  appear,  they  are  nothing  and  will  come 
to  nothing.  The  Psalmist  sees  and  foretells  this  rather  than 
prays  for  it, 

9.  Another  comparison,  as  vivid  and  bold  and  as  unhackneyed 
as  the  last  two,  but  obviously  describing  a  sudden  and  violent 
overthrow  of  the  wicked,  not  their  silent  and  gradual  disappear- 
ance. A  whirlwind  is  represented  as  descending  suddenly  upon 
the  fire  of  thorns  which  travellers  have  lighted  in  the  desert  for 
cooking  purposes,  and  sweeping  away  as  in  a  moment  all  the 
blazing  sticks  and  embers,  leaving  the  place  bare  and  their  whole 
purpose  frustrated. 

There  is  a  difference  of  opinion,  however,  as  to  the  rendering  of 
the  last  words.  R.  V.  refers  them  to  the  fuel,  the  green  and  the 
burningr  (sticks)  alike.  Others  would  refer  to  the  contents  of 
the  vessel  and  render,  '  the  raw  meat  and  the  cooked  alike  ' ;  or 
combine  the  two  lines  of  interpretation  by  translating,  '  both  the 
raw  meat  and  the  hot  embers.'  There  is,  however,  much  to  be 
said  for  the  rendering  accepted  both  by  Cheyne  (following 
Bickell)  and  Kirkpatrick,  'While  the  flesh  is  still  raw,  wrath  shall 
sweep  them  away  like  a  whirlwind.'  This  is  substantially 
accepted  in  R.  V.  marg.  and  preserves  the  meaning  of  the  word 
translated  'burning'  in  its  proper  reference  to  the  fire  of  the 
Divine  anger. 


THE   PSALMS  58.  lo— 59.  i  291 

The  righteous  shall  rejoice  when  he  seeth  the  vengeance :  10 

He  shall  wash  his  feet  in  the  blood  of  the  wicked. 

So  that  men  shall  say,  Verily  there  is  a  reward  for  the  11 

righteous : 
Verily  there  is  a  God  that  judgeth  in  the  earth. 

For  the   Chief    Musician ;     set    to    Al-tashheth.      A  Psalm    of  59 
David  :  Michtam :  when  Saul  sent,  and  they  watched  the  house 
to  kill  him. 

Deliver  me  from  mine  enemies,  O  my  God  :  i 

10.  This  verse  is  not  out  of  harmony  with  the  'prophetic' 
view  of  the  Psalm  taken  in  these  notes,  but  rather  ^confirms  the 
interpretation  that  the  verbs  in  the  preceding  verses  are  to  be 
understood  as  futures.  Whether  such  joy  as  is  here  described  is 
justifiable  or  not,  depends  upon  its  nature  and  the  grounds  on 
which  it  is  based.  The  justification  is  found  in  the  next  verse. 
The  figure  of  washing  the  feet  in  the  blood  of  the  vanquished, 
natural  to  the  age  and  familiar  to  the  contemporaries  of  the 
Psalmist,  must  in  any  case  be  revolting  to  modern  taste  and 
feeling. 

11.  The  moral  element  in  such  rejoicing  is  here  declared.  To 
exult  on  personal  grounds  over  the  defeat  of  an  enemy,  however 
natural,  is  not  commended  in  the  Old  Testament.  But  that 
faithful  servants  of  God,  to  whom  no  revelation  of  a  future  life  had 
been  made,  should  exult  in  the  thought  that  the  righteous  actually 
are  recompensed  in  the  earth,  and  in  manifest  proofs  that  a 
righteous  God  does  exist  and  will  act,  is  not  only  defensible,  but 
inevitable.  Such  anticipation  and  exultation  then  formed  a  neces- 
sary element  in  a  righteous  character.  No  true  Israelite  could 
contemplate  with  a  moment's  toleration  the  alternative  '  there  is 
no  God  that  judgeth  in  the  earth,'  and  the  writer  of  this  spirited 
and  powerful  Psalm  has  illustrated  the  principle  that  '  The  song 
that  nerves  a  nation's  heart  is  in  itself  a  deed.* 

Psalm  LIX.     Prayer  in  time  of  Danger. 

Another  Psalm  belonging  to  the  group  assigned  to  David, 
attributed  in  the  title  to  the  period  of  Saul's  persecution,  when 
assassins  surrounded  his  house  and  he  escaped  through  Michal's 
stratagem  ;  see  i  Sam.  xix.  11-17.  It  presents  points  of  similarity 
with  Ps.  Iviii.  and  others  of  this  *  Davidic '  group,  but  the  closest 
parallel  is  with  Ps.  Iv.  As  in  the  case  of  that  Psalm,  it  seems 
quite  impossible  to  suppose  that  David  described  his  enemies  in 
the  terms  of  verses  6  and  14  ;  verse  1 1  would  be  out  of  place  in  his 

U   2 


292  THE    PSALMS  59.  2-4 

Set  me  on  high  from  them  that  rise  up  against  me. 

2  Deliver  me  from  the  workers  of  iniquity, 
And  save  me  from  the  bloodthirsty  men. 

3  For,  lo,  they  lie  in  wait  for  my  soul ; 

The  mighty  gather  themselves  together  against  me  : 
Not  for  my  transgression,  nor  for  my  sin,  O  Lord. 

4  They  run  and  prepare  themselves  without  my  fault : 
Awake  thou  to  help  me,  and  behold. 

lips,  whilst  verses  8  and  13  exhibit  that  wider  outlook  upon  the 
nations  around  in  comparison  with  Israel  which  would  be,  not 
indeed,  impossible — but  unnatural  in  David's  lips  under  the  cir- 
cumstances named. 

But  of  positive  guidance  to  the  circumstances  under  which  it 
was  written,  we  have  little  or  none.  Hezekiah,  Josiah,  Nehemiah 
have  been  named  as  possible  authors,  and  Theodore  of  Mopsuestia 
is  at  one  with  some  of  the  latest  critics  in  ascribing  the  Psalm  to 
the  Maccabasan  period.  The  phraseology  of  verse  ir  seems  lo 
point  to  one  in  authority,  and  if  Ewald  be  not  literally  right  in 
naming  as  author  one  of  the  later  kings  before  the  Babylonish 
captivity,  he  has  indicated  the  period  to  which  the  Psalm  probably 
belongs. 

It  is  divided  into  four  stanzas  :  verses  1-5  form  an  opening 
prayer  for  deliverance,  verses  6-9  contain  a  fuller  description  of 
the  foe  and  his  insolent  defiance,  in  verses  10-13  the  prayer  is 
renewed,  while  verses  14-17  anticipate  deliverance  as  near. 

1,2.  Set  me  on  higrli  describes  a  form  of  deliverance  for  which 
the  Psalmists  often  prayed.  In  times  of  anarchy  the  '  high 
fortress'  is  the  only  safe  place  for  the  non-combatant;  see 
verse  9  and  Prov.  xviii.  10.  Two  words  describe  the  enmity  to 
the  Psalmist  entertained  by  his  foes,  two  others  describe  their 
character  as  wicked  and  bloodthirsty. 

3.  The  first  verb  is  perfect,  the  second,  inceptive  :  the  meaning 
being,  'they  have  lain  in  wait,'  and  now  see,  'they  begin  to 
gather  openly  against  me.'  The  assertion  of  innocence  suits 
Hezekiah  or  Josiah  better  than  later  kings  of  Judah,  though  the 
transgression  and  fault  here  referred  to  may  mean  only  that 
the  attack  had  been  unprovoked  by  any  offence  against  the 
assailants. 

4.  The  tenses  still  point  to  a  process  going  on,  to  which 
attention  is  called  :  an  idea  borne  out  by  the  apostrophe  praying 
that  God  would  arouse  Himself  to  see,  as  if  He  were  blind  and 
apathetic. 


THE   PSALMS  59.  5-S  293 

Even  thou,  O  Lord  God  of  hosts,  the  God  of  Israel, 

Arise  to  visit  all  the  heathen : 

Be  not  merciful  to  any  wicked  transgressors.  [Selah 

They  return  at  evening,  they  make  a  noise  like  a  dog,       ^ 

And  go  round  about  the  city. 

Behold,  they  belch  out  with  their  mouth ; 

Swords  are  in  their  lips  : 

For  who,  say  they^  doth  hear? 

But  thou,  O  Lord,  shalt  laugh  at  them ; 

Thou  shalt  have  all  the  heathen  in  derision. 

5.  The  pith  of  the  whole  prayer  is  that  God  would  '  visit  the 
nations,'  described  as  'treacherous  evil-doers,'  and  the  fact  that 
the  stress  of  the  plea  lies  upon  these  words  puts  the  supposition 
of  the  title  as  to  the  composition  of  the  Psalm  practically  out  of  the 
question.  Note  the  titles  of  God  used,  *  Jehovah,  God  of  Sabaoth, 
God  of  Israel '  :  (i)  the  personal,  covenant-keeping,  God  of 
revelation,  (2)  the  Ruler  of  all  forces  in  earth  or  sky,  (3)  one  who 
occupies  a  specially  gx'acious  relation  to  His  chosen  people,  which 
He  is  asked  here  to  maintain  and  manifest  by  the  overthrow  of 
their  enemies.  Many  interpreters  think  that  the  accumulation  of 
several  names  found  in  some  Elohistic  Psalms  points  to  the  blending 
of  different  recensions;  compare  Ps.  1. 1.  Each  title  has  its  own 
significance  and  there  is  nothing  redundant  here,  but  the  gram- 
matical form  of  Elohim  is  anomalous. 

6.  The  comparison  is  intelligible  only  to  those  familiar  with 
Oriental  cities  and  the  troops  of  scavenger  dogs  which  gather  at 
night-time  in  search  of  the  refuse  scattered  in  the  streets  by  day, 
howling  like  hyenas,  which  indeed  they  resemble ;  compare 
Ps.  xxii.  16.  Render  the  second  clause  '  They  snarl  like  dogs.' 
The  phrase  *  round  the  city '  may  be  part  of  the  drapery  of  the 
metaphor,  and  need  not  imply  that  the  Psalmist  was  actually  be- 
sieged in  a  city  ;  but  the  figure  would  be  much  more  appropriate 
if  he  was  actually  hemmed  in  by  savage  foes, 

7.  The  phraseology  of  this  verse  might  be  illustrated  by  the  foul 
language  of  Rabshakeh  in  2  Kings  xviii.  The  scornful  defiance  of 
Jehovah  manifested  by  the  Psalmists'  enemies,  backed  up  by  brute 
force,  formed  their  severest  trial ;  compare  xlii.  10,  &c. 

8.  Again  an  emphatic,  '  Nay,  but  Thou,  Jehovah,'  as  in  verse  5. 
The  Psalmist  gives  a  parallel  reply  to  that  which  Isaiah  and 
Hezekiah  gave  to  the  servants  of  Sennacherib,  2  Kings  xix.  21,  &c. 
Zion  laughs  her  enemies  to  scorn,  because  God  has  them  in 
derision,  Ps.  ii.  4. 


294  THE   PSALMS  39.  9-13 

9  O  my  strength,  I  Avill  wait  upon  thee  : 
For  God  is  my  high  tower. 

10  The  God  of  my  mercy  shall  prevent  me  : 

God  shall  let  me  see  my  desire  upon  mine  enemies. 

11  Slay  them  not,  lest  my  people  forget : 

Scatter  them  by  thy  power,  and  bring  them  down, 
O  Lord  our  shield. 

1 2  For  the  sin  of  their  mouth,  afid  the  words  of  their  lips, 
Let  them  even  be  taken  in  their  pride, 

And  for  cursing  and  lying  which  they  speak. 

13  Consume  them  in  wrath,  consume  them,  that  they  be  no 

more: 

9.  R.  V.  is  no  doubt  right  in  reading,  with  the  chief  versions, 
my  streu^h,  instead  of  '  His  strength '  as  in  A.  V.  and  the  Mas- 
soretic  text.  It  is  difficult  to  make  sense  of  the  latter.  See 
Revisers'  marginal  note  and  compare  the  form  of  the  refrain  in 
verse  17. 

10.  Render  '  My  God  shall  come  to  meet  me  with  His  loving- 
kindness,'  according  to  one  reading  in  the  Hebrew,  followed  by 
LXX.  The  archaism  prevent  is,  after  all  explanations  given,  liable 
to  be  misunderstood.  '  God  shall  let  me  look  upon  them  that  lie 
in  wait  for  me '  is  nearer  to  the  Hebrew  than  R.  V.  text,  and 
though  no  doubt  ^see  my  desire'  is  substantially  meant,  the 
original  phrase  is  not  quite  so  strong  as  this. 

1 1 .  Slay  thenx  not,  lest  my  people  forget :  a  terrible  prayer, 
but  to  be  taken  in  conjunction  with  '  Consume  them  '  in  verse  13. 
The  Psalmist  does  not  pray,  however,  that  his  enemies  may  suffer 
a  cruel,  lingering  punishment,  that  he  may  gloat  over  their  pain  ; 
but  that  the  visitation  may  be  such  as  will  form  a  visible  monument 
and  manifestation  of  God's  righteous  judgement,  whereas  a  swift 
and  complete  destruction,  striking  awe  for  the  moment,  might 
soon  be  forgotten. 

*Make  them  wander  to  and  fro'  (R.V.  marg.)  shows  the  kind 
of  punishment  intended  :  the  case  of  Cain  may  perhaps  be  referred 
to,  Gen.  iv.  13,  14. 

12.  The  words  *  for  '  and  *  and '  are  inserted  in  A.  V.  and  R.  V. 
to  make  the  meaning  clearer.  But  the  literal  translation  is  more 
forcible.  The  sin  of  their  mouth,  the  word  of  their  lips  !  '  Oh 
let  them  be  taken  then  in  their  pride,'  &c.  The  first  line  may 
mean  that  every  word  of  their  lips  is  a  sin,  and  is  so  taken  by 
Cheyne,  Perowne,  Driver,  and  others. 

13.  The  phraseology  of  this  verse  shows  that  it  must  not  be 


THE   PSALMS  59.  14-16  295 

And  let  them  know  that  God  riileth  in  Jacob, 

Unto  the  ends  of  the  earth.  [Selah 

And  at  evening  let  them  return,  let  them  make  a  noise  like  14 

a  dog, 
And  go  round  about  the  city. 

They  shall  wander  up  and  down  for  meat,  i5 

And  tarry  all  night  if  they  be  not  satisfied. 
But  I  will  sing  of  thy  strength  ;  16 


understood  too  literally.  The  Psalmist  prays  for  judgement,  the 
manner  he  leaves  to  God,  though  himself  desiring  now  this,  now 
that  form  of  visitation.  He  is  chiefly  anxious  that  the  great  moral 
ends  of  Divine  government  should  be  answered.  In  the  second 
half  of  the  verse  render  '  And  let  men  know,'  the  third  plural  being 
used  impersonally.  The  fact  that  the  God  of  Jacob  rules  is  to 
be  known  to  the  very  ends  of  the  earth.  Such  language  fits  well 
the  time  of  Hezekiah  and  was  actually  used  by  that  king,  accord- 
ing to  the  narrative  of  2  Kings  xix.  19. 

14.  The  last  section  of  the  Psalm  contains  a  repetition  of 
verse  6 — with  a  difference.  This  difference  does  not  amount  to 
so  much  as  is  indicated  by  the  translation  of  A.  V.  and  R.  V.,  let 
them  return,  &c.,  as  if  the  Psalmist  desired  in  somewhat  truculent 
spirit  that  the  fierceness  of  his  enemies  should  bring  its  own  curse 
upon  their  heads.  Render,  with  most  modern  interpreters,  'And 
at  evening  they  do  indeed  return,  they  snarl  like  dogs,'  &c.,  a 
contrast  being  intended  between  their  disappointed  rage  and  the 
Psalmist's  quiet  confidence  in  verses  16  and  17. 

15.  This  seems  made  clear  by  the  emphatic  They  with  which 
this  verse  opens,  best  expressed  by  *  As  for  them,  they  wander,'  &c. 
These  words  are  not  found  in  the  description  of  verse  6.  There 
the  Psalmist  passes  on  to  speak  of  his  enemies'  fury  and  defiance, 
here  of  their  disappointment  and  defeat.  The  dogs  have  not  been 
able  to  seize  their  prey,  and  they  are  represented  as  spending  the 
night  in  fruitless  search. 

The  word  rendered  tarry  all  night  (R.V.  and  A.  V.  marg.") 
is  understood  by  A.  V.  text,  following  LXX,  as  derived  from 
another  root;  'grudge'  (A.  V.)  is  an  archaism  for  'murmur.* 
It  is  found  freely  in  Wiclif,  Tyndale,  and  earlier  English  versions, 
for  open  complaint,  whilst  in  A.  V.  we  find  the  signs  of  transition 
to  the  modern  sense  of  inward  discontent  and  ill-will.  See 
Dr.  Hastings'  article  in  his  Bible  Dictionary. 

16.  17.  Render  '  But  I — I  will  sing'  :  the  Psalmist  emphasizes 
by    way    of   contrast    his    own    security    and    happiness.     He 


296  THE   PSALMS  59.  i^— 60.  i 

Yea,  I  will  sing  aloud  of  thy  mercy  in  the  morning : 
For  thou  hast  been  my  high  tower, 
And  a  refuge  in  the  day  of  my  distress. 
^7  Unto  thee,  O  my  strength,  w^ill  I  sing  praises : 
For  God  is  my  high  tower,  the  God  of  my  mercy. 

60  For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  set  to  Shushan  Eduth  :  Michtam  of 
David,  to  teach  :  when  he  strove  with  Aram-naharaim  and 
with  Aram-zobah,  and  Joab  returned,  and  smote  of  Edom  in 
the  Valley  of  Salt  twelve  thousand. 

I  O  God,  thou  hast  cast  us  off,  thou  hast  broken  us  down ; 


enlarges  upon  the  similar  expressions  used  in  verse  9,  adding 
the  clause  in  the  morningr — so  frequent  in  the  Psalms,  see  es- 
pecially Ps.  XXX.  5 — partly  to  point  the  contrast  with  his  own 
night  of  weeping,  partly  as  a  striking  antithesis  to  the  description 
of  his  enemies  prowling  in  vain  through  the  night  outside  his 
stronghold. 

The  repetition  of  the  words  '  refuge,'  '  strength,'  '  high  tower  ' 
to  describe  God's  care  of  His  servant,  now  that  his  enemies  have 
vanished  from  the  scene,  shows  clearly  the  change  of  mood  from 
that  described  in  the  opening  verses.  Prayer  has  brought  succour 
and  faith  triumphs  in  the  assurance  of  things  not  seen. 

Psalm  LX.  After  a  Lost  Battle. 
It  is  clear  that  this  Psalm  was  written  under  the  shadow  .of 
a  great  disaster.  If  it  was  originally  composed  in  its  present  form, 
it  would  seem  to  refer  to  a  serious  defeat  sustained  at  the  hands 
of  Edom,  which  the  Psalmist  hopes  will,  with  Divine  aid,  be 
changed  into  a  victory.  The  title  refers  it  to  a  critical  period 
in  the  history  of  David's  conquests,  recorded  in  2  Sam.  viii.  13,  14. 
According  to  the  received  text  of  that  passage  there  is  no  mention 
of  Edom  in  verse  13,  but  a  slight  change  would  harmonize  the 
verse  with  i  Chron,  xviii.  12,  so  that  we  should  read,  David 
'returned  from  smiting  the  Syrians  and  smote  of  Edom  in  the 
Valley  of  Salt  eighteen  thousand  men.'  The  tradition  mentioned 
in  the  title  of  the  Psalm  speaks  of  a  victory  gained  by  Joab  and 
the  slaughter  of  twelve  thousand  men.  If  harmony  is  to  be 
established  between  Psalm  and  history,  we  must  suppose  that 
while  David  was  engaged  in  conquering  the  Syrians,  the  Edomites 
took  the  opportunity  of  raiding  from  the  South  and  gained  a 
substantial  victory  which  for  the  time  caused  a  panic  ;  but  that 
David,  like  an  able  general,  was  not  taken  off  his  guard,  but '  gat  him 
a  name '  for  the  masterly  way  in  which  he  defeated  both  enemies, 


THE   PSALMS  60.  i  297 

Thou  hast  been  angry ;  O  restore  us  again. 

vanquishing  '  Aram '  himself  and  dispatching  Joab  at  the  critical 
moment  to  overthrow  Edom.  The  Valley  of  Salt  extended  from 
the  foot  of  the  Dead  Sea  to  the  cliffs  (Akrabbim),  which  here 
form  the  margin  of  the  Ghor  and  divide  Judah  from  Edom. 

This  explanation  is  possible,  though  somewhat  forced,  since  the 
history  gives  no  hint  of  any  defeat,  while  verses  2  and  3  would 
seem  to  describe  a  kingdom  shaken  to  its  foundations.  Those 
who  reject  the  title  are  divided  in  their  views  ;  no  suitable  occasion 
before  the  exile  has  been  suggested,  and  the  majority  bring  down 
the  Psalm  to  Maccabaean  times,  when  the  nation  again  possessed 
armies  (verse  10).  Against  this  is  certainly  to  be  set  the  fact  that 
verses  5-12  are  repeated  in  Ps.  cviii,  a  composite  Psalm  found  in 
Book  V.  The  compiler  apparently  used  for  liturgical  purposes 
a  portion  of  this  Psalm  as  found  in  an  earlier  collection,  and  the 
interval  implied  would  necessitate  a  much  earlier  date  than  the 
Maccabaean  times  for  the  Psalm  before  us. 

It  is  quite  possible,  however,  that  this  Psalm  also  is  composite 
and  that  the  latter  portion  embodies  an  earlier  '  Davidic  '  fragment 
which,  with  its  characteristic  references  to  Edom  and  Philistia, 
was  utilized  in  the  time  of  Jehoiakim  (see  2  Kings  xxiv.  10)  or 
by  an  Exilic  or  post-Exilic  Psalmist,  who  desired  to  encourage  his 
compatriots  under  circumstances  which  might  almost  drive  them 
to  despair.  This  is  substantially  Ewald's  explanation,  though  he 
divides  the  Psalm  somewhat  differently,  and  some  such  theory  as 
this  best  accounts  for  the  facts.  Verses  1-4  would  then  describe 
the  desolation  of  Jerusalem  during  its  later  history :  verse  5 
strikes  a  transition  note,  and  in  verses  6-8  is  a  quotation  from  an 
early  oracle.  Then  verses  9-12  may  be  viewed  either  as  the 
application  of  the  oracle  which  a  '  Davidic  '  poet  had  made  and 
which  the  later  Psalmist  uses,  or  the  later  writer  uses  the  term 
*  Edom '  as  symbolical  of  the  enemies  which  were  formidable  in 
his  own  time. 

In  the  title,  the  words  Shnshan  Eduth,  '■  Lily  of  the  Testimony,' 
stand  for  the  melody  to  which  the  Psalm  was  to  be  sung. 
Compare  Shoshanim  Eduth  in  the  title  of  Ps.  Ixxx.  For  the 
phrase  to  teach,  which  means  that  the  Psalm  was  intended  for 
committal  to  memory  and  recitation,  compare  2  Sam.  i.  i8. 

1.  Parallel  expressions  are  found  in  Ps.  xliv.  gff.,  Ixxiv.  i, 
universally  considered  to  be  of  comparatively  late  date.  Cast 
us  off  is  used  in  the  sense  of  'forsaken  our  cause,'  and  hast 
"broken  us  down  =  hast  crushed  our  power;  as  in  2  Sam.  v.  20, 
a  rush  of  water  breaks  through  a  dam,  or  as  when  a  fatal  breach 
is  made  in  a  wall ;  see  Ps.  Ixxx.  12.  Restore  us  a^aln  does  not 
necessarily  imply  captivit}',  though  it  recalls  the  ideas  and  phrases 
of  Ps.  Ixxx. 


298  THE   PSALMS  60.  2-5 

2  Thou  hast  made  the  land  to  tremble  ;  thou  hast  rent  it : 
Heal  the  breaches  thereof;  for  it  shaketh. 

3  Thou  hast  shewed  thy  people  hard  things : 

Thou  hast  made  us  to  drink  the  wine  of  staggering. 

4  Thou  hast  given  a  banner  to  them  that  fear  thee, 

That  it  may  be  displayed  because  of  the  truth.       [Selah 

5  That  thy  beloved  may  be  delivered, 
Save  with  thy  right  hand,  and  answer  us. 

2.  The  figures  are  those  of  an  earthquake,  which  causes  at  first 
a  trembling  of  the  solid  ground,  then  fissures  and  chasms  appear, 
then  houses  topple  and  fall  and  are  shattered  in  ruins.  Such 
phraseology  might  be  used  of  the  effects  of  an  Edomite  raid  in 
David's  time,  but  could  be  only  hyperbolically  true. 

3.  hard  thing's :  i.  e.  harsh,  severe,  see  Exod.  i.  14.  The  wine 
of  stagg-ering^  means  'the  cup  of  God's  wrath,'  the  effects  of  which 
upon  the  sufferers  are  like  those  of  '  a  drink  of  deadly  wine  ^ 
(P.B.V.),  making  the  brain  to  reel,  the  limbs  to  totter,  and  causing 
the  whole  man  to  be  prostrate  and  stupefied  with  pain  and  fear. 
Compare  Isa.  li.  17-23. 

4.  A  difficulty  in  the  interpretation  of  the  second  line  arises 
from  the  use  of  a  word  which  by  some  is  understood  to  mean 
'bow,'  by  others  truth,  the  usage  in  either  case  being  somewhat 
anomalous.  Whichever  translation  be  given,  moreover,  the 
connexion  of  this  verse  with  the  context  presents  some  awkward 
features. 

The  LXX  and  other  ancient  versions,  R.  V.  marg.,  and  most 
modern  commentators,  translate  (Only)  '  that  they  may  flee  from 
before  the  bow.'  The  words  in  this  case  are  spoken  in  bitterness,  as 
if  God  were  reproached  for  making  Israel  His  people,  and  giving 
them  a  banner  with  His  name  inscribed  upon  it,  only  to  put  them 
to  flight  before  the  enemy.  The  alternative  rendering,  adopted  inl 
R.  V.  text,  by  some  ancient  versions,  Delitzsch,  and  other  moderns. 
That  it  may  be  displayed  because  of  the  truth,  can  with 
difficulty  be  obtained  from  the  Hebrew,  and  does  not  fit  well 
with  the  preceding  verse.  It  is  contended  that  this  rendering 
makes  a  better  preparation  for  the  prayer  of  verse  5,  but  the  line' 
of  cleavage  in  the  thought  of  the  Psalm  is  most  naturally  found  at 
the  end  of  verse  4. 

5.  According  to  the  theory  of  interpretation  suggested  in  the' 
introduction  this  verse  prepares  the  way  for  a  fragment  of  another 
and  earlier  Psalm ;   but  it  is  impossible  to  dogmatize  in  such  a 


THE   PSALMS  60.  6-8  299 

God  hath  spoken  in  his  hohness ;  I  will  exult :  6 

I  will  divide  Shechem,  and  mete  out  the  valley  of  Succoth. 
Gilead  is  mine,  and  Manasseh  is  mine ;  7 

Ephraim  also  is  the  defence  of  mine  head ; 
Judah  is  my  sceptre. 

Moab  is  my  washpot ;  8 

Upon  Edom  will  I  cast  my  shoe : 
Philistia,  shout  thou  because  of  me. 

matter,  and  whatever  the  history  of  its  composition   the  Psalm 
should  now  be  studied  as  one  whole. 

Render  'Thy  beloved  ones,'  the  word  being  plural  and  referring 
to  Israel. 

6.  Some  interpreters,  following  LXX,  translate  '  God  hath 
spoken  in  His  sanctuary,'  i.  e.  an  oracle  had  been  received  by 
the  High  Priest,  perhaps  by  Urim  and  Thummim.  The  clause, 
however,  more  probably  means  '  hath  promised  by  His  holiness ' ; 
compare  '  hath  sworn  by  his  holiness,'  Amos  iv.  2.  If  this  be  so, 
are  these  the  actual  words  of  a  traditional  oracular  utterance,  or 
the  poet's  vigorous  phrasing  of  the  general  promise  given  to  David 
in  2  Sam.  vii.  9I  We  incline  to  the  former  view.  I  will  esnilt: 
God  is  certainly  the  speaker,  and  is  represented  as  triumphantly 
parcelling  out  the  land  of  Canaan  for  His  people's  inheritance. 

The  selection  of  places  appears  to  be  made  in  order  to  represent 
the  possession  of  the  whole  county  by  the  united  tribes.  Shechem 
and  Succoth  (near  to  the  Jabbok)  represent  the  west  and  east  of 
Jordan  respectively. 

7.  Gilead  and  Manasseh  stand  for  the  east  of  Jordan,  Ephraim 
and  Judah  for  the  west,  including  both  north  and  south  ;  the  two 
leading  tribes  being  named  which  were  often  rivals  and  apt  to  be 
jealous  of  one  another.  Ephraim  is  the  helmet  on  the  warrior's 
head,  and  Judah  the  sceptre  in  the  lawgiver's  hand.  Compare 
Gen.  xlix.  lo. 

8.  As  the  land  of  Canaan  is  wholly  God's  and  has  been  given 
by  Him  to  His  people,  so  the  nations  around  are  absolutely  in 
His  power  and  are  to  be  reduced  to  abject  and  degrading 
servitude.  The  vessel  in  which  the  feet  are  washed,  the  slave 
to  whom  the  warrior  throws  his  sandals  to  be  cleaned,  symbolize 
the  degradation  to  which  Moab  and  Edom  were  to  be  subjected 
and  the  haughty  contempt  of  the  conqueror  for  their  boasted 
strength.  If  R.  V.  text  "Upon  Edom  is  correct,  the  reference 
is  to  a  possible,  but  not  clearly  established  custom  of  throwing 
a  shoe  upon  a  piece  of  land  to  claim  possession  of  it.  The 
marginal  rendering   *  Unto   Edom '  seems,   however,  preferable. 


300  THE    PSALMS  60.  9-12 

9  Who  will  bring  me  into  the  strong  city  ? 
Who  hath  led  me  unto  Edom  ? 

10  Hast  not  thou,  O  God,  cast  us  off? 

And  thou  goest  not  forth,  O  God,  with  our  hosts. 

1 1  Give  us  help  against  the  adversary  : 
For  vain  is  the  help  of  man. 

12  Through  God  we  shall  do  valiantly : 

For  he  it  is  that  shall  tread  down  our  adversaries. 


and  then  the  explanation  is  either  as  given  above  (compare  Matt, 
iii.  11)  or,  as  Duhm  suggests,  Edom  is  the  corner  into  which  soiled 
sandals  are  tossed  when  taken  off. 

In  the  last  line,  A.  V.  text  'Triumph  thou  because  of  me,'  with 
the  marginal  note  explaining  that  irony  is  intended,  hardly  gives  the 
writer's  meaning.  If  the  Hebrew  pointing  is  preserved,  the  shout 
which  Philistia  is  to  raise  must  be  either  that  of  terror  or  of  loyal 
acclaim  ;  but  a  slight  change  would  give,  '  Over  Philistia  will  I 
shout  in  triumph,'  as  in  cviii.  9,  and  this  reading  we  should  certainly 
accept. 

9.  After  quoting  this  encouraging  oracle,  the  Psalmist  applies 
it  to  present  circumstances.  The  connexion  of  thought  is  this. 
Whereas  the  oracle  has  spoken  of  triumph  over  Edom,  at  the 
moment  Edom  constitutes  a  great  danger,  an  apparently  in- 
superable obstacle,  and  the  people  are  encouraged  to  remember 
that  though  present  difficulties  are  great,  the  God  whose  promises 
are  here  recalled  is  able  to  give  complete  victory  to  His  people. 

In  this  light,  the  second  line  of  this  verse  cannot  mean  as  R.  V. 
gives  it,  Who  hath  led  me  unto  Edom?  but  the  perfect  tense 
must  be  understood  as  A.  V.  and  R.  V.  marg.,  in  the  sense  of 
'who  will,'  or  'can  lead  me*  into  such  an  impregnable  fortress 
as  Petra? 

10.  Again  we  find  a  difference  between  R.  V.  on  the  one  hand 
and  A.  V.  with  R,  V.  marg.  on  the  other.  The  latter  rendering 
makes  hope  in  God  to  begin  in  this  verse  ;  we  prefer  R.  V.  text, 
Hast  not  thou  .  .  .  cast  us  off?  that  is,  '  How  can  we  gain  the 
victory  when  God  Himself  seems  to  have  abandoned  us  ? ' 

11, 12.  The  soreness  of  the  need  drives  God's  people  to  prayer ; 
out  of  the  very  depths  of  despair  a  cry  may  go  up  to  God.  Such 
cry  is  sure  to  be  heard,  a  favourable  answer  is  given  and  faith  is 
reinforced,  so  that  the  Psalmist  can  end,  as  believers  love  to  do, 
with  the  note  of  glad  expectation  which  is  in  itself  a  presage  of 
victory. 


THE   PSALMS  61.  i,  2  301 

For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  on  a  stringed  instrument.     A  Psalm      61 
of  David. 

Hear  my  cry,  O  God  ;  i 

Attend  unto  my  prayer. 

From  the  end  of  the  earth  will  I  call  unto  thee,  when  my  a 

'  heart  is  overwhelmed : 

Lead  me  to  the  rock  that  is  higher  than  I. 

Psalm  LXI.     A  Royal  Prayer. 

An  earnest  and  touching  supplication,  by  a  king,  or  for  a  king. 
If  the  inscription  is  followed  and  David  be  understood  to  be  the 
author,  the  Psalm  must  have  been  written  during  Absalom's 
rebellion  and  his  own  absence  from  Jerusalem.  There  is  nothing 
in  the  Psalm  absolutely  inconsistent  with  such  authorship,  though 
the  expression  of  verse  2,  'from  the  end  of  the  earth,'  must  in 
that  case  be  understood  as  the  hyperbole  of  poetry  and  pious 
longing.  Most  modern  critics  place  the  Psalm  much  later,  but 
only  agree  in  opposing  Davidic  authorship.  Hezekiah,  Zedekiah, 
Antiochus  the  Great,  and  Simon  the  Maccabee  are  amongst  the 
names  suggested  for  '  the  king  '  of  verse  6.  If  the  Psalm  be 
understood  as  written  by  one  who  himself  was  far  from  Palestine, 
praying  for  himself,  his  country,  and  his  king,  the  period  of 
Zedekiah  perhaps  suits  the  circumstances  best.  It  is,  however, 
quite  possible  that  a  king  should  speak  of  himself  in  the  third 
person,  and  in  that  case  no  name  is  so  suitable  as  that  of  David. 

This  short  Psalm  breathes  petition  in  its  first  half,  verses  1-4, 
and  confidence  in  the  second,  verses  5-8.  For  '  Neginah '  (A.  V.) 
see  Introd.  p.  15.  On  a  string-ed  instrument  (R.  V.)  probably 
represents  the  meaning,  though  the  form  of  the  word  is  unusual. 

1.  Many  of  the  Psalmist's  prayers  are  cries,  in  the  literal  sense 
of  the  word.  Driver  translates  *  ringing  cry,'  suitable  for  the 
expression  of  joy ;  here  'piercing  cry'  (Cheyne)  is  better. 

2.  Prom  the  end  of  the  earth,  not,  as  some,  '  the  land.' 
Either  the  phrase  is  used  by  one  who  was  literally  an  exile  far 
away  from  Jerusalem,  or  by  one  who  in  the  intensity  of  his  longing 
for  the  house  of  God  felt  himself  to  be  as  if  at  the  ends  of  the 
earth.  Render  '  do  I  call  unto  thee,'  (now)  *  when  my  heart 
fainteth  ;  lead  me  up  upon  a  rock  that  is  too  high  for  me.' 

Amongst  the  several  interpretations  of  this  last  figure  we  must 
exclude  such  as  understand  the  rock  to  be  a  difficulty  which  the 
Psalmist  cannot  surmount.  There  remain  those  which  view  God 
Himself  as  the  rock  of  shelter  which  casts  a  broad  shadow, 
suggested  by  A.  V.  and  R.  V,,  and  those  which  interpret  the  word. 


302  THE   PSALMS  61.  3-5 

3  For  thou  hast  been  a  refuge  for  me, 
A  strong  tower  from  the  enemy. 

4  I  will  dwell  in  thy  tabernacle  for  ever : 

I  will  take  refuge  in  the  covert  of  thy  wings.  [Selah 

5  For  thou,  O  God,  hast  heard  my  vows  : 

Thou  hast  given  me  the  heritage  of  those  that  fear  thy 
name. 


as  is  usual  in  the  Psalter,  to  indicate  a  place  of  refuge,  to  which 
the  Psalmist  by  his  own  effort  cannot  climb.  The  Hebrew  means 
literally  to  '■  lead  on,'  a  condensed  expression  for  '  lead  me  to  and 
place  me  on.'  We  would  therefore  translate,  'Lead  me  up  upon  the 
rock  that  is  too  high  for  me,'  see  R.  V.  marg.  The  Psalmist  is  in 
such  straits  that  he  not  only  needs  Divine  protection,  but  Divine 
help  to  reach  the  desired  refuge. 

3,  4.  The  meaning  of  the  last  verse  is  now  made  clear.  God 
Himself  has  been  to  the  Psalmist  in  the  past  a  refuge  and  a  strouir 
tower  (verse  3),  and  with  this  thought  in  mind  he  prays  that  he 
may  be  led  to  that  Rock  which  is  higher  than  he  and  can  ever 
shelter  him  (R.  V.  text).  God's  '  tent '  or  visible  abode,  with  which 
His  presence  is  indissolubly  associated  (verse  4),  is  dear  to  the 
Psalmist's  heart,  and  with  this  in  view  he  prays  that  he  may  be 
led  once  again  to  that  asylum  which  he  cannot  reach  by  unaided 
effort  (R.  V.  margin). 

It  is  difficult,  perhaps  impossible,  to  separate  the  spiritual  from 
the  material  element  in  the  prayer  of  the  Psalmist,  to  distinguish 
between  symbol  and  thing  symbolized.  The  association  of 
a  spiritual  presence  of  God  with  a  definite  locality  was  always 
close  under  the  old  covenant,  and  the  lofty  conceptions  of  worship 
given  by  Christ  in  John  it.  21-24  have  not  even  yet  fully  pervaded 
Christendom. 

5.  Unless  we  know  the  circumstances  of  the  writer,  we  cannot 
decide  whether  the  tenses  in  this  verse  indicate  past  experience 
or  express  confidence  for  the  future.  If  David  be  the  speaker,  it 
must  be  understood  that  Absalom's  rebellion  has  been  crushed, 
but  the  king  is  not  yet  restored.  If  a  pious  Israelite  of  the  later 
monarchy  be  in  question,  these  '■  prophetic  perfects '  express  his 
assurance  that  God  will  be  faithful  to  His  covenant.  Similarly, 
on  the  former  hypothesis,  the  word  '  me '  should  be  inserted  as  in 
R.  V. ;  on  the  latter,  the  marginal  rendering  is  preferable — '■  Thou 
hast  granted  possession  unto  them  that  fear  thy  name,'  i.  e.  wilt 
never  leave  thine  own  people  without  the  inheritance  which  is 
theirs  by  covenant,  with  a  primarj'  reference  to  the  land  of  Promise 


THE   PSALMS  Gl.  6—62.  i  303 

Thou  wilt  prolong  the  king's  life :  6 

His  years  shall  be  as  many  generations. 
He  shall  abide  before  God  for  ever :  7 

O  prepare  lovingkindness  and  truth,  that  they  may  pre- 
serve him. 
So  will  I  sing  praise  unto  thy  name  for  ever,  8 

That  I  may  daily  perform  my  vows. 

For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  after  the  manner  of  62 

Jeduthun.     A  Psalm  of  David. 

My  soul  waiteth  only  upon  God  :  i 

itself  and  a  general  allusion  to  that '  heritage  '  which  is  the  portion 
of  God's  people  wherever  they  dwell. 

6.  If  a  king  speaks  these  words,  he  alludes  to  himself  in  the 
third  person  because  the  promise  of  long  life  and  abundant 
posterity  was  made  officially  to  David  and  his  dynasty  (2  Sam. 
vii)  ;  but  the  interpretation  which  makes  this  a  prayer  for  the 
king,  with  assurance  that  it  will  be  answered,  is  simpler  and  more 
natural. 

*7.  abide  corresponds  to  '  be  established '  in  2  Sam.  vii.  la,  13, 
16,  the  standard  expression  of  the  promise  to  David's  'house.' 

prepare,  lit.  '  appoint '  or  '  give  charge  to  '  Lovingkindness 
and  Truth  as  celestial  ministrants,  that  they  may  guard  and  keep 
him.  Compare  Ivii.  3,  where  the  same  messengers  are  spoken 
of  as  sent  forth  to  deliver  God's  servant. 

8.  The  use  of  the  first  person  in  this  last  verse  favours  the  view 
of  those  who  understand  David  to  be  the  speaker  throughout. 
On  the  other  hand,  their  transition  from  a  prayer  for  the  king  to 
a  declaration  of  personal  thanksgiving  and  resolve  is  surely  not 
unnatural.  Later  Jewish  interpretation  made  the  whole  Psalm 
national,  and  though  this  was  probably  not  its  primary  significance, 
the  individual  Israelite  may  well  stand  for  the  whole  people  in  his 
resolve  to  be  faithful  to  his  allegiance  and  render  praise  and 
service  to  God,  when  God  in  His  mercy  favours  Zion,  guards  its 
king,  and  bestows  their  full  inheritance  upon  those  who  fear  His 
name. 

Psalm  LXII.     Trust  in  God  Alone. 

This  Psalm  is  like  xxxix.  in  style,  in  its  use  of  words,  and  in  its 
title.  Ewald,  Perowne,  and  others  attribute  it  to  the  same  author: 
the  former  says,  '  a  prophet  of  the  kingdom  of  the  Ten  Tribes  and 
one  of  the  great  pillars  of  the  true  religion  in  strife  with  the 
dissolute  men  of  his  time.'    Kirkpatrick  finds  affinities  with  Ps.  iv, 


304  THE   PSALMS  62.  2,  3 

From  him  cometh  my  salvation. 

2  He  only  is  my  rock  and  my  salvation  : 

He  is  my  high  tower ;  I  shall  not  be  greatly  moved. 

3  How  long  will  ye  set  upon  a  man, 
That  ye  may  slay  him^  all  of  you, 

and  (with  Delitzsch)  inclines  to  place  the  Psalm  as  David's  at  the 
time  of  Absalom's  rebellion.  Baettigen  and  others  interpret  it  of 
the  sufferings  of  the  community  during  the  Maccabsean,  or,  at 
earliest,  the  Persian  period.  There  is  nothing  clearly  to  prove,  or 
certainly  to  disprove,  any  of  these  theories,  though  w^e  incUne  to 
follow  Ewald.  What  is  more  important  is  to  mark  the  unusual 
tenacity  and  strength  of  the  Psalmist's  confidence.  More  trium- 
phant Psalms  may  easilj^  be  found  ;  it  would  not  be  easy  to  point 
to  a  more  signal  illustration  of  the  quiet,  invincible  assurance  which 
marks  the  '  iustum  ac  tenacem  propositi  virum.'  The  three  stanzas 
1-4,  5-8,  and  9-12  do  but  repeat  the  main  theme. 

For  Jeduthun  see  Introd.  to  Ps.  xxxix,  possibly  the  same  as 
Ethan  (i  Chron.  xv.  17,  &c.),  a  leader  of  the  Temple  choir. 

1.  The  opening  word  strikes  the  keynote — Only  1  A  comment 
upon  this  particle  is  given  in  Ps.  xxxix,  but  as  it  occurs  six  times 
in  this  Psalm,  and  its  repetition  stamps  the  whole  lyric  with 
a  characteristic  impress,  it  will  be  well  to  understand  it 
thoroughly. 

The  usage  of  this  word  ak  is  given  by  the  dictionaries  as 
twofold :  (i)  it  asseverates,  with  the  meaning  surely^  either 
in  reference  to  (a)  an  acknowledged,  or  (6)  a  newly  perceived 
truth ;  (2)  it  restricts,  with  the  meaning  only,  either  (a)  in  relation 
to  the  context  =  *  howbeit,'  or  (6)  in  relation  to  ideas  generally, 
with  a  strong  exclusive  force.  It  is  not  difficult  to  see,  however, 
that  these  meanings  are  closely  connected,  and  whichever  of  the 
two  predominates  the  other  is  probably  present  in  the  background. 
A  strong  assertion,  with  a  side  reference  to  other  possible  alterna- 
tives strenuously  excluded — as  if  the  speaker  would  say  ^  Yes,  but 
after  all,  and  in  spite  of  all,  this  remains  the  one  truth  on  the 
subject ' — appears  to  give  the  full  meaning.  *  Only  upon  God 
doth  my  soul  silently  wait ' :  this  '  wise  passiveness '  of  the 
spirit,  waiting  in  stillness  for  God  to  speak  and  act,  is  illustrated 
briefly  in  xxxix.  2,  more  fully  in  Ps.  xxxvii. 

2.  The  wise  man  will  do  nothing  but  look  in  one  direction  for 
help,  when  from  no  direction  but  that  one  can  help  come.  Hence 
the  expectation  of  verse  i  corresponds  to  the  assertion  of  verse  2  ; 
calm  certainty  being  characteristic  of  both  clauses  alike. 

3.  A  sudden  and  vigorous  outburst  of  indignant  defiance.  The 
Psalmist  has  been  silent  God-wards,  but  his  foes  have  been  pressing 


THE   PSALMS  62.  4-8  305 

Like  a  bowing  wall,  like  a  tottering  fence  ? 
They  only  consult  to  thrust  him  down  from  his  excellency  ;  4 
They  delight  in  lies  : 

They  bless  with  their  mouth,  but  they  curse  inwardly. 

[Selah 
My  soul,  wait  thou  only  upon  God ;  5 

For  my  expectation  is  from  him. 

He  only  is  my  rock  and  my  salvation  :  6 

He  is  my  high  tower ;  I  shall  not  be  moved. 
With  God  is  my  salvation  and  my  glory  :  7 

The  rock  of  my  strength,  and  my  refuge,  is  in  God. 
Trust  in  him  at  all  times,  ye  people ;  8 

Pour  out  your  heart  before  him  : 

him  sore,  and  he  turns  upon  them,  one  man  at  bay  against  a  host. 
'  How  long  will  ye  rush  upon  a  man,  battering  him,  all  of  you  ? ' 
Only  too  glad  if  the  strong  wall  they  have  been  assaulting  gives 
any  sign  of  tottering  to  its  fall.  The  A.  V.  misleads  by  inserting 
'  Ye  shall  be  '  ;  if  words  are  supplied  at  all,  we  should  read  '  as 
though  he  were  a  bowing  wall,'  &c. 

4.  Another  only  marks  the  character  and  action  of  the  enemies  ; 
their  one  object  is  to  compass  the  Psalmist's  overthrow.  Not  in 
appearance,  however  ;  their  assaults  are  not  always  overt.  They 
had  learned  how  to  use  the  honeyed  phrases  of  '  the  candied 
tongue'  and  to  'crook  the  pregnant  hinges  of  the  knee.'  But 
their  inward  curses  are  more  audible  than  they  had  thought,  and 
their  victim  is  not  deceived  by  their  protestations, 

5.  The  calm  confidence  of  verse  i  has  been  disturbed  by  the 
thought  of  the  baseness  of  these  hypocrites.  The  Psalmist  recalls 
his  soul  to  her  earlier  mood  and  bids  her  turn  once  more  to  the 
only  quarter  from  whence  hope  and  help  can  come. 

6.  7.  Repetition,  but  without  tautology.  Faith  has  ascended 
another  turn  of  the  spiral  way  ;  '  I  shall  not  be  greatly  moved ' 
has  become  *  I  shall  not  be  moved  in  any  wise.'  The  slightly 
varied  recurrence  of  the  phrase  which  expressed  confidence  in  the 
first  stanza  falls  musically  upon  the  ear  with  a  distinctly  poetical 
effect,  such  as  mediaeval  singers  produced  in  the  triolet  and  the 
rondeau. 

8.  An  exhortation  such  as  is  found  in  Psalms  xxiv,  1,  and  other 
*  prophetic  '  Psalms.  Ye  people  is  best  understood  of  Israel  ; 
not  the  world  at  large,  nor  the  Psalmist's  immediate  disciples,  but, 
as  the  LXX  following  another  reading,  *  the  whole  assembly  of 


3o6  THE   PSALMS  62.  9-12 

God  is  a  refuge  for  us.  [Selah 

9  Surely  men  of  low  degree  are  vanity,  and  men  of  high 
degree  are  a  lie : 
In  the  balances  they  will  go  up ; 
They  are  together  lighter  than  vanity. 

10  Trust  not  in  oppression, 

And  become  not  vain  in  robbery : 

If  riches  increase,  set  not  your  heart  thereon, 

11  God  hath  spoken  once, 
Twice  have  I  heard  this ; 

That  power  belongeth  unto  God ; 

12  Also  unto  thee,  O  Lord,  belongeth  mercy  : 

For   thou   renderest   to  every    man    according   to   his 
work. 


the  people.'     The  personal  DeHverer  will  prove  to  be  a  national 
Refuge. 

9.  Here  ak  introduces  a  reference  to  other  grounds  of  con- 
fidence. With  firm  hand  the  Psalmist  sweeps  them  all  away. 
Two  words  for  'man'  are  used  here,  as  in  xlix.  21,  to  distinguish 
the  lofty  and  the  lowly  :  alike  they  are  but  '  a  breath,'  or  worse, 
a  lie :  weighed  in  the  scales  of  the  sanctuary,  they  ffo  up  ;  for  all 
of  them,  together,  high  and  low  alike,  are  *  lighter  than  a  breath.' 

10.  Hence  a  lesson  which  the  prophet  would  impress  upon  his 
generation — one  more  needed  under  the  later  monarchy  than  in 
David's  time — not  to  trust  in  wealth  unjustly  acquired,  for  such 
prosperity  is  hollow  and  deceptive. 

11.  12.  And,  to  give  weight  to  his  warning,  the  Psalmist  gives 
the  substance  of  a  revelation  repeatedly  impressed  on  his  own 
mind  as  by  a  direct  voice  from  heaven.  The  emphatic  form  of 
the  utterance  '  once,  yea  twice,'  is  similar  to  the  usage  in  Proverbs, 
•  three  things,  yea  four,'  xxx.  15  ;  'six  things,  yea  seven,'  vi.  i6. 

The  oracle  says  that  Power  and  Mercy,  Strength  and  Loving- 
kindness,  should  go  always  together — are  to  be  found,  indeed  in 
the  full  sense,  in  God  alone  ;  therefore  in  Him,  and  in  Him  alone, 
should  the  people  trust.  It  is  interesting  to  note  that  in  the  mind 
of  the  truly  religious  Israelite  there  is  no  contradistinction  between 
mercy  and  justice.  To  render  to  every  man  according  to  his 
work  is  a  mark  of  love  as  well  as  power,  and  is  possible  only  to 
perfect  power  and  perfect  love  combined  in  the  All-perfect. 


THE   PSALMS  63.  i  307 

A  Psalm  of  David,  when  he  was  in  the  wilderness  of  Judah.        63 
O  God,  thou  art  my  God ;  early  will  I  seek  thee  :  r 

Psalm  LXIII.     Morning  Orisons. 

From  early  times  in  the  Christian  Church  this  Psalm  has  been 
used  for  morning  devotion.  The  Apostolical  Constitutions  refer 
to  it  as  beginning  the  worship  of  the  day,  and  Athanasius  and 
Chrysostom  commend  it  for  the  purpose.  But  it  is  not,  properly 
speaking,  a  morning  prayer.  Greek  and  Latin  versions  alike 
favour  the  idea  through  their  rendering  of  the  opening  words,  and 
all  the  English  versions  keep  the  word  'early.'  The  Psalm, 
however,  is  the  expression  of  earnest  longing  for  God  and  His 
house,  on  the  part  of  one  who  is  far  from  the  sanctuary  and 
in  circumstances  of  personal  difficulty  and  danger.  The  tone  of 
lofty  spiritual  aspiration  which  pervades  the  earlier  portion  is 
akin  to  that  of  Pss.  xlii.  and  Ixxxiv,  but  in  this  respect  the  Psalm 
before  us  represents  perhaps  the  high-water  mark  of  the  Psalter. 

If  the  Psalm  were  written  by  David,  as  the  title  suggests,  no 
more  appropriate  occasion  could  be  found  than  when  he  was  in 
the  wilderness  of  Judah,  not  during  the  persecution  of  Saul,  but 
at  the  time  of  the  rebellion  of  Absalom.  The  circumstances  are 
recorded  in  2  Sam.  xv.-xvii.  Absalom  had  '  stolen  the  hearts  of 
the  men  of  Israel.'  The  king  and  his  followers  had  effected 
a  hasty  flight,  the  ark  had  been  sent  back  to  the  city,  the  self- 
exiled  were  '  faint  in  the  wilderness,'  though  refreshed  by  the 
kindly  feeling  of  an  Ittai  and  a  Ziba  ;  and  David,  oppressed  by 
the  consciousness  of  having  brought  trouble  upon  himself  and  of 
having  been  unfaithful  to  his  earlier  allegiance  to  Jehovah,  doubtless 
longed  for  renewed  communion  with  God,  and  the  visible  tokens 
of  the  presence  of  God,  in  safety  and  in  peace  again.  It  is  quite 
intelligible,  moreover,  that  in  David  this  deep  and  earnest  religious 
feeling  might  be  blended  with  the  passionate  denunciation  of 
enemies  with  which  the  Psalm  closes,  and  the  mention  of  'the 
king '  in  verse  11  fits  the  circumstances  of  David  better  than  any 
other  that  can  be  named. 

Nevertheless,  it  is  most  probable  that  this  beautiful  lyric,  with 
its  darkened  and  troubled  close,  belongs  to  a  much  later  period. 
The  title  is  vague,  and  apparently  refers  to  i  Sam.  xxiii.  and  xxiv, 
when  David  was  not  yet  king,  while  verse  11  cannot  refer  to 
Saul.  Certain  expressions  in  the  Psalm  (verses  2  and  3  and 
elsewhere)  point  to  a  later  date.  The  allusions  to  enemies  do 
not  fit  the  occasion  of  Absalom's  rebellion.  It  is  true  that  '  if  the 
reference  of  the  Psalm  to  David  is  abandoned,  it  is  idle  to 
speculate  as  to  the  author  and  his  circumstances '  (Kirkpatrick). 
There  is  nothing  to  prevent  the  modern  interpreter  from  illustrat- 

X    2 


3o8  THE   PSALMS  63.2,3 

My  soul  thirsteth  for  thee,  my  flesh  longeth  for  thee, 
In  a  dry  and  weary  land,  where  no  water  is. 

2  So  have  I  looked  upon  thee  in  the  sanctuary, 
To  see  thy  power  and  thy  glory. 

3  For  thy  lovingkindness  is  better  than  life ; 
My  lips  shall  praise  thee. 

ing  the  Psalm  by  a  reference  to  David's  experiences,  or  to  those 
of  later  saints ;  but  no  conclusion  may  be  safely  based  upon  the 
tradition  embodied  in  the  title,  whilst  for  our  own  part  we  are 
quite  unwilling  to  accept  the  sweeping  assumption  which  would 
postpone  all  highly  spiritual  utterances  in  the  Psalter  to  some 
late  post-Exilic  period.  The  value  of  the  Psalm  is  not  impaired, 
though  its  interest  may  be  somewhat  diminished,  by  our  ignorance 
of  its  authorship. 

1.  Two  names  for  God  are  here  employed,  but  they  cannot  be 
accurately  distinguished,  and  perhaps  Elohira  in  the  address  is 
a  substitute  for  Yahweh. 

R.  V.  marg.  is  right  in  its  rendering,  ^  Earnestly  will  I  seek 
thee.'  The  root  of  the  word  is  the  same  as  that  from  which 
'day-break'  is  derived,  but  the  usage  in  such  passages  as 
Prov.  viii.  17  is  distinctly  in  favour  of  'seek  diligently'  (R.V.), 
not  *  early  '  as  in  A.V. 

soul  and  flesh  represent  the  whole  man.  The  phrase  dry 
and  weary  laud  perhaps  gave  rise  to  the  tradition  concerning 
the  wilderness  of  Judah,  but  in  any  case  it  must  not  be  understood 
literally.  It  is  spiritual  drought  from  v^rhich  the  Psalmist  is 
suffering. 

2.  He  recalls  the  past,  the  high  communion  with  God  which 
he  has  enjoyed  in  the  jsanctuary — an  expression  which  may 
refer  to  the  worship  of  God  before  the  ark,  but  more  probably 
indicates  the  Temple- worship.  The  only  difficulty  lies  in  the 
introductory  word  '  So,'  and  concerns  the  exact  sense  in  which  the 
past  is  recalled  and  its  relation  to  the  present.  The  transposition 
of  clauses  effected  in  A.  V.  is  grammatically  possible,  but  R.  V. 
almost  certainly  gives  the  meaning,  '  Thus  have  I  gazed  upon  Thee 
in  the  sanctuary,'  eager  to  see  that  revelation  of  majesty  and 
glory  which  has  been  granted  there  to  worshippers  like  Isaiah 
(vi.  1-3).  There  the  Psalmist  has  strained  his  wistful  eyes  and 
been  satisfied  ;  here  also  he  earnestly  seeks  that  he  may  find, 

3.  A  further  reason  for  spiritual  longing.  The  Psalmist  has 
beheld  not  only  God's  glorious  majesty,  but  the  tenderness  of  His 
love  ;  and  the  thought  of  this,  whilst  impelling  him  to  seek  for 
fuller  revelation,  inspires  present  thanksgiving.    It  is  true  that  the 


THE   PSALMS  63.  4-8  309 

So  will  I  bless  thee  while  I  live : 

I  will  lift  up  my  hands  in  thy  name. 

My  soul  shall  be  satisfied  as  with  marrow  and  fatness ; 

And  my  mouth  shall  praise  thee  with  joyful  lips ; 

When  I  remember  thee  upon  my  bed,  ' 

And  meditate  on  thee  in  the  night  watches. 

For  thou  hast  been  my  help, 

And  in  the  shadow  of  thy  wings  will  I  rejoice. 

My  soul  followeth  hard  after  thee : 

Thy  right  hand  upholdeth  me. 

connexion  of  thought  between  the  halves  of  verses  2  and  3  is  not 
quite  clear,  and  Hupfeld  conjectures  that  a  transposition  of 
clauses  has  taken  place  in  every  verse  down  to  the  end  of  9. 
Delitzsch  thinks  the  chiasmus  (crossing)  of  clauses  to  be  in- 
tentional on  the  part  of  the  poet.  Little  difficulty  will  be  found 
if  the  clauses  are  taken  as  they  stand  and  some  little  latitude  be 
allowed — such  as  must  be  granted  to  Hebrew  conjunctions — in 
the  rendering  of  the  connecting  particles. 

4.  So  has  not  the  same  meaning  as  in  verse  2.  It  seems  to 
= '  accordingly '  or  '  therefore.'  Longing  has  now  passed  into 
enjoyment,  prayer  is  lost  in  praise. 

5.  Again  the  language  is  purely  metaphorical.  He  who  sent 
water  to  Israel  in  the  desert  has  quenched  the  Psalmist's  thirst ; 
He  who  fed  His  people  with  manna  can  satisfy  the  hungry  soul : 
compare  Pss.  xxii.  26,  xxxvi.  8.  No  allusion  to  sacrificial  feasts 
need  be  supposed. 

6.  The  insertion  of  And  in  the  second  line,  thus  throwing  the 
whole  verse  into  close  dependence  upon  the  last,  appears  to  be 
a  mistake.  R.  V.  marg.  correctly  renders  '  I  meditate ' ;  and  in 
that  case  the  verse  stands  alone,  giving  an  illustration  of  the  wa3' 
in  which  the  soul  is  sustained  and  comforted  by  God's  presence. 
Lit.  '  night-thoughts '  are  intended,  and  the  allusion  makes  this 
the  more  appropriate  for  a  morning  Psalm.  The  Jewish  night 
contained  three  watches  ;  compare  *  the  middle  watch  '  in  Judges 
vii.  19. 

7.  Two  co-ordinate  clauses,  referring  to  past  and  future  re- 
spectively, and  both  together  expressing  that  exultant  confidence 
into  which  the  Psalmist  has  passed  after  the  opening  stage  of 
strong  desire  is  over. 

8.  The  mutual  relation  between  God  and  His  trusting  servant  is 
here  beautifully  described.  The  soul  cleaves  to  the  strong  right 
Hand  which   upholds,   and   as  the   sustaining    Hand    draws   the 


3IO  THE    PSALMS  63.  9—64.  i 

9  But  those  that  seek  my  soul,  to  destroy  it, 
Shall  go  into  the  lower  parts  of  the  earth. 

10  They  shall  be  given  over  to  the  power  of  the  sword  : 
They  shall  be  a  portion  for  foxes. 

11  But  the  king  shall  rejoice  in  God : 

Every  one  that  sweareth  by  him  shall  glory ; 

For  the  mouth  of  them  that  speak  lies  shall  be  stopped. 

64  For  the  Chief  Musician.     A  Psalm  of  David. 

I  Hear  my  voice,  O  God,  in  my  complaint : 

upheld  spirit  follows  close.  Such  action  and  reaction  of  the 
Divine  and  the  human  belong  to  the  very  life  of  true  religion  ; 
desire  leads  to  delight  and  delight  quickens  desire.  Neither 
chronology  nor  logic  must  be  allowed  to  determine  the  conditions 
of  the  communion  of  souls.  *  Abide  in  me  and  I  in  you  '  describes 
a  relation  which  may  be  enjoyed,  but  cannot  be  defined. 

9.  An  abrupt  descent  from  heaven  to  earth,  from  communion 
with  God  to  wrath  against  man.  The  Psalmist  feels  no  incon- 
sistency ;  his  belief  in  God  necessitates  his  conviction  that  those 
who  oppose  Him  will  be  destroyed. 

lower  parts  of  tlie  earth  :  is  here  a  synonym  for  Sheol,  the 
under-world.  So  perhaps  in  Isa.  xliv.  23,  but  this  is  doubtful ; 
while  in  Ps.  cxxxix.  15  the  phrase  has  another  meaning.  For  use 
in  N.  T.  see  Eph.  iv.  9. 

10.  They  shall  be  slain  by  the  sword  of  justice  and  their 
corpses  left  to  be  the  prey  of  jackals— unhonoured  and  unsung. 

11.  The  connexion  here,  as  in  Ixi.  6,  seems  to  imply  that  '  the 
king '  is  the  speaker,  whp  refers  to  himself  in  the  third  person. 
He  is  identified  with  the  cause  of  God  ;  he  and  those  who  with 
him  reverently  invoke  the  name  of  God  shall  triumph  and  be  had 
in  honour,  whilst  all  those  who  are  identified  with  the  cause  of 
falsehood,  perhaps  are  worshippers  of  false  gods,  shall  be  put  to 
silence  for  ever  in  the  grave. 

Psalm  LXIV.     Judgement  upon  the  Wicked. 

A  picture  is  here  presented,  very  familiar  to  all  readers  of  the 
Psalter,  but  in  this  instance  sketched  with  specially  vigorous 
strokes,  of  the  manifold  and  malicious  machinations  of  the  wicked 
against  the  righteous  and  the  Divine  judgement  which  awaits  them. 
These  two  ideas  occupy  the  two  parts  of  the  Psalm,  verses  1-6  and 
7-12  respectively.  The  treatment  possesses  no  very  distinctive 
features,  though  the  words  are  no  mere  echoes  from  other  writers, 


THE   PSALMS  64.  2-6  311 

Preserve  my  life  from  fear  of  the  enemy. 

Hide  me  from  the  secret  counsel  of  evil-doers ;  2 

From  the  tumult  of  the  workers  of  iniquity  : 

Who  have  whet  their  tongue  like  a  sword,  3 

And  have  aimed  their  arrows,  even  bitter  words  : 

That  they  may  shoot  in  secret  places  at  the  perfect :  4 

Suddenly  do  they  shoot  at  him,  and  fear  not. 

They  encourage  themselves  in  an  evil  purpose ;  5 

They  commune  of  laying  snares  privily ; 

They  say,  Who  shall  see  them  ? 

They  search  out  iniquities ;  We  have  accomplished,  say  6 

they^  a  diligent  search  : 
And  the  inward  thought  of  every  one,  and  the  heart,  is 

deep. 

neither  is  there  any  clear  indication  of  date.  EarHer  commentators 
were  inclined  to  compare  this  Psalm  with  vii,  and  assign  it,  as  in 
the  title,  to  David,  but  most  now  place  it  in  the  post-Exilic  period. 
The  language  does  not  very  appropriately  fit  either  Saul's  persecu- 
tion or  Absalom's  rebellion. 

1.  complaint  (R.  V.)  rather  than  'prayer'  (A.  V.).  See  Job 
vii.  13  and  the  fuller  parallel  in  Ps.  Iv.  2. 

Some  commentators  render  'Thou  wilt  guard — hide,' &c.,  the 
futureof  confident  expectation  rather  than  the  imperativeof  petition. 
Pear  of  the  enemy  means  the  terror  which  he  inspires. 

2.  Secret  plotting  is  contrasted  with  open  tumultuous  raging  as 
in  Ps.  ii.  I,  2.  But  the  former  seems  to  predominate  in  this  case. 
The  position  is  that  of  a  righteous  man  living  in  the  midst  of  an 
ordered  but  godless  community,  not  of  one  persecuted  by  a  king, 
nor  of  a  king  driven  from  his  throne  by  rebellion. 

3.  4.  Parallels  to  this  phraseology  are  numerous,  especially  in 
Ps.  Iv,  where  the  situation  is  somewhat  similar.  For  the  tongue 
as  a  sword  see  Iv.  21  and  Ivii.  4.  For  the  shooting  of  arrows, 
either  bitter  words  or  evil  devices,  see  xi.  2  and  Iviii.  7.  For 
the  secret  machinations  of  the  evil-doer  see  x.  8  and  xvii.  12. 

5,  6.  The  care  with  which  these  treacherous  plots  are  conceived 
and  hatched  is  here  described.  The  conspirators  strengthen  one 
another  in  evil  and  are  agreed  that  there  is  no  eye  of  Providence 
to  detect  them,  no  hand  of  Providence  to  expose  them. 

The  word  translated  search  hardly  conveys  the  idea  in  English. 
Render  '  They  have  carefully  devised  iniquities ;  we  have  perfected, 


312  THE    PSALMS  64.  7-10 

7  But  God  shall  shoot  at  them ; 

With  an  arrow  suddenly  shall  they  be  wounded. 

8  So  they  shall  be  made  to  stumble,  their  own  tongue  being 

against  them : 
All  that  see  them  shall  wag  the  head. 

9  And  all  men  shall  fear ; 

And  they  shall  declare  the  work  of  God, 
And  shall  wisely  consider  of  his  doing. 
10  The  righteous  shall  be  glad  in  the  Lord,  and  shall  trust 
in  him ; 
And  all  the  upright  in  heart  shall  glory. 


say  they,  our  careful  device  ;  and  each  man's  inmost  thought,  and 
his  heart,  is  deep.'  The  onl}'  period  in  David's  history  which  at 
all  corresponds  with  this  picture  would  be  his  early  life  at  the 
court  of  Saul. 

7.  But  no  heart  is  so  deep  that  its  thoughts  are  hidden  from 
God,  and  no  plot  is  so  perfect  but  He  can  frustrate  it.  God  has 
His  arrows  and  will  use  them.  The  tenses  here  convey  '  perfect 
historical  certainty';  the  Psalmist  is  as  sure  of  the  coming  judge- 
ment as  if  he  saw  it  with  his  eyes. 

8.  Render  *  And  they  are  made  to  stumble ' :  ///.  *  they  make 
to  stumble,*  the  '  they '  being  impersonal  and  conveying  the  meaning 
of  a  passive  voice.  R.V.  marg.  understands  'they'  of  the  persecuted 
righteous,  which  is  cumbrous  and  unnecessary.  Their  own 
tongue  being-  against  them  conveys  in  a  striking  form  the  idea 
so  often  expressed  of  the  .wicked  being  caught  in  their  own  trap 
and  falling  into  the  pit  they  have  made  for  another. 

For  wag  the  head  in  scorn,  see  Ps.  xxii.  7  ;  Jer.  xlviii.  27. 

9.  The  end  shall  be  secured  which  the  Psalmists  chiefly  desire 
when  they  contemplate  with  satisfaction  the  overthrow  of  the 
wicked.  The  moral  government  of  God  shall  be  vindicated,  men 
in  general  shall  be  struck  with  awe  and  shall  declare  the  judgement 
to  be  the  act  of  God  and  shall  understand  His  work.  The  satisfac- 
tion is  that  of  the  spectator  or  reader  of  the  drama  who  rejoices  in 
the  administration  of  '  poetic  justice.' 

10.  This  end  is  secured  by — what  happens  so  seldom  in  real 
life — the  perfect  identification  of  one  side  with  the  cause  of  righteous- 
ness, as  the  other  is  with  that  of  iniquity.  The  Psalmist  has  not 
the  slightest  doubt  that  he  and  his  friends,  who  appear  to  be  few 
and  feeble,  are  the  righteous  and  the  upright  in  heart.     Their 


THE   PSALMS  G5.  1,2  313 

For  the  Chief  Musician.     A  Psalm.     A  Song  of  David.  65 

Praise  waiteth  for  thee,  O  God,  in  Zion :  i 
And  unto  thee  shall  the  vow  be  performed. 

O  thou  that  hearest  prayer,  a 

part  is  to  'take  refuge'  in  Jehovah  and  glory,  or  enjoy  holy- 
exultation  in  the  thought  of  His  supreme  power  and  their  own 
perfect  security  and  peace. 

Psalm  LXV.     A  Harvest  Thanksgiving. 

The  Psalm  includes  much  more  than  praise  for  the  blessings  of 
a  fruitful  earth.  It  includes  history  as  well  as  nature  in  its  scope, 
and  whilst  it  may  have  been  intended  for  a  festival,  either  at  the 
presentation  of  first-fruits  or  at  the  ingathering  of  harvest,  verses  7 
and  8  would  appear  to  point  to  a  recent  national  deliverance. 
Delitzsch  has  suggested  the  period  of  reviving  prosperity  after  the 
retirement  of  Sennacherib  (see  Isa.  xxvii.  30),  whilst  some  MSS. 
of  the  LXX  refer  it  to  the  return  from  captivity,  'a  song  of 
Jeremiah  and  EzekielM  Baethgen  thinks  that  the  universalist 
tone  of  the  Psalm  proves  it  to  be  later  than  the  time  of  the  second 
Isaiah. 

On  the  whole,  the  period  of  Hezekiah  fits  the  conditions  fairly 
well,  but  the  Psalm  is  general  in  its  character,  and  in  modernized 
forms  has  been  sung  with  appropriateness  under  very  varied  con- 
ditions. One  somewhat  curious  use  has  been  made  of  it,  since  it 
forms  part  of  the  Office  for  the  Dead  in  the  services  of  both  the 
Eastern  and  the  Western  Church, 

It  falls  naturally  into  three  parts  :  approach  to  God,  r-4  ;  praise 
to  Him  as  Ruler  of  all  nations,  5-8 ;  and  as  Giver  of  fruitful  seasons 
and  the  abundant  harvest  of  the  present  year,  9-13. 

For  the  word  Song  in  the  title,  as  a  more  general  description 
than  Psalm,  see  Introd.  p.  17. 

1.  lit.  'For  thee,  O  God,  praise  is  silent  in  Zion,'  which  may 
either  be  interpreted  as  in  A.V.  and  R.  V.  praise  waiteth  (R.V. 
marg.  renders  'There  shall  be  silence  and  praise,'  surely  an 
intolerable  alternative),  or  with  a  slightly  different  pointing  we 
may  read  with  LXX  '  Praise  is  comely.'  The  last  is  one  of  those 
smooth  and  easy  ways  out  of  a  difficulty  which  the  careful  textual 
critic  usually  suspects.  Probably  the  meaning  is  that  praise,  like 
prayer,  is  often  truest  when  in  deep  and  still  devotion  it  waits  in 
the  presence  of  God.  The  thought  of  the  Hebrew  worshipper, 
however,  is  not  that  of  the  modern  poet,  whose  rapture  '  transcends 
the  imperfect  offices  of  prayer  and  praise,'  but  that  in  reverence 
he  is  silent  for  a  while  before  his  king  and  then  pours  forth  thanks- 
giving and  supplication. 


314  THE   PSALMS  64.  3-5 

Unto  thee  shall  all  flesh  come. 

3  Iniquities  prevail  against  me : 

As  for  our  transgressions,  thou  shalt  purge  them  away. 

4  Blessed  is  the  man  whom  thou  choosest,  and  causest  to 

approach  unto  thee, 
That  he  may  dwell  in  thy  courts : 
We  shall  be  satisfied  with  the  goodness  of  thy  house, 
The  holy  place  of  thy  temple. 

5  By  terrible  things  thou  wilt  answer  us  in  righteousness, 

2.  If  all  flesli  implies,  as  it  should,  all  mankind,  it  does  not 
follow  that  a  late  date  must  be  assigned  to  the  Psalm.  In  the  time 
of  Hezekiah  Israel's  outlook  upon  the  nations  had  been  greatly 
widened,  and  the  prophecy  embodied  in  Isa.  ii.  2,  Micah  iv.  T, 
shows  that  the  prophetic  range  of  vision  at  this  time  included  all 
peoples. 

3.  R.  V.  '■  words '  or  *  matters  of  iniquities '  shows  that  the 
Hebrew  emphasizes  the  counts  of  the  indictment  which  the 
Psalmist  enumerates  in  his  self-accusation.  The  thought  is  that 
of  xl.  12,  but  the  confession  that  his  sins  are  too  strong  for  him  is 
precisely  the  best  preparation  for  the  forgiveness  which  the  next 
clause  anticipates.  Thou  is  emphatic  :  only  God  can  purge  away 
such  evils. 

The  alternation  between  singular  and  plural,  me  and  our, 
suggests  the  relation  in  the  Psalmist's  mind  between  the  individual 
and  the  community.  He  does  not  make  the  distinction  so  sharply 
as  modern  habits  of  thought  require.  He  praises  and  prays  as 
a  representative  Israelite.  For  a  treatment  of  the  whole  subject 
see  Introd.  to  Vol.  II ;  compare  also  note  on  Iv.  12. 

4.  The  whole  nation  is  privileged  to  enjoy  closeness  of  access 
to  God  in  His  temple.  The  Psalmist  contemplates  such  an 
approach  for  the  nation,,  by  means  of  its  representatives  in  the 
worship  of  a  great  festival  ;  and,  after  emphasizing  the  happiness 
of  those  permitted  thus  to  draw  near,  he  expresses  the  determina- 
tion rightly  to  use  the  opportunity.  The  force  of  the  cohortative, 
literally  translated  '■  let  us  be  satisfied,'  may  be  given  as  '  we 
would  fain  be  satisfied  '  with  the  rich  supplies  of  grace  which  all 
need,  but  which  all  cannot  obtain,  as  we  can  in  Thy  holy  place, 
the  home  for  Thy  specially  favoured  guests. 

5.  Render  '  Thou  dost  answer  us '  ;  the  meaning  is  not  that  in 
answer  to  the  prayer  now  offered  God  will  greatly  intervene,  but 
a  general  description  is  given  of  God's  continuous  regard  for  His 
people,  with  special  reference  to  a  recent  manifestation  of  it. 

terrible  thingfs,  i.  e.    recent  events   in  their  terror-striking 


THE   PSALMS  G5.  6-8  315 

O  God  of  our  salvation  ; 

Thou  that  art  the  confidence  of  all  the  ends  of  the  earth, 

And  of  them  that  are  afar  off  upon  the  sea  : 

Which  by  his  strength  setteth  fast  the  mountains ;  6 

Being  girded  about  with  might ; 

Which  stilleth  the  roaring  of  the  seas,  the  roaring  of  their  7 

waves, 
And  the  tumult  of  the  peoples. 
They  also  that  dwell  in  the  uttermost  parts  are  afraid  at  8 

thy  tokens : 
Thou  makest  the  outgoings  of  the  morning  and  evening 

to  rejoice. 


eflfect  upon  the  nations,  inspiring  awe  in  all  who  witness  them  ; 
these,  however,  are  all  done  in  rig-liteousness,  and  their  chief 
significance  lies  in  the  vindication  of  Divine  justice  and  equity. 

The  intervention  in  question  was  in  Israel's  favour  and  implied 
'  salvation '  for  them,  but  it  is  viewed  as  an  act  of  the  God  of  the 
whole  earth,  who  may  be  and  ought  to  be  trusted  by  all  nations 
alike,  far  and  near.  The  description  of  universality  is  as  complete 
as  Jewish  geography  could  make  it,  including  the  ends  of  the 
earth  and  the  sea,  afar  off  (R.  V.  marg.). 

6,  7.  Render  '  Setting  fast  the  mountains  with  His  strength, 
girding  Himself  with  might,  Thou  who  stillest,'  &c.  He  is  God  of 
nature  as  well  as  of  nations,  and  the  Psalmist  passes  easilj'  and 
naturally  from  one  to  the  other.  The  two  great  symbols  of 
strength  and  majesty  in  this  world  are  the  mountains  and  the 
ocean  :  the  everlasting  hills  so  firmly  fixed  that  no  strength  can 
move  them,  the  waves  of  the  sea  so  restless  that  no  might  can 
control  them.  But  it  is  God  who  establishes  the  great  mountains 
in  their  place  and  stills  the  waves  by  a  word  from  His  lips. 
Surely  the  nations  ought  to  fear,  and  may  place  their  whole  con- 
fidence in  such  a  God  as  this. 

8.  Fear  and  joy  characterize  His  worshippers.  Thy  tokens 
means  the  signs  of  God's  power  and  presence  which  are  manifest 
even  in  regions  so  remote  that  ^  God  Himself  scarce  seemed  there  to 
be ' ;  nay,  the  regions  of  the  farthest  east  and  loneliest  west  are  made 
to  '  sing  for  joj'  *  by  Him  who  fills  and  illumines  all.  Outgoing's 
applies  properly  to  the  east,  whence  the  sun  starts  to  run  its  race, 
but  may  be  applied  to  the  *  portals  '  (Kaj')  of  morning  and  evening 
alike.     All  may  well  rejoice  because  the  King,  whose  glory  is  thus 


3i6  THE   PSALMS  65.  9-12 

9  Thou  visitest  the  earth,  and  waterest  it, 

Thou  greatly  enrichest  it ; 

The  river  of  God  is  full  of  water  : 

Thou  providest  them  corn,  when  thou  hast  so  prepared 
the  earth. 
10  Thou  waterest  her  furrows  abundantly ; 

Thou  settlest  the  ridges  thereof: 

Thou  makest  it  soft  with  showers ; 

Thou  blessest  the  springing  thereof, 
n  Thou  crownest  the  year  with  thy  goodness; 

And  thy  paths  drop  fatness. 
12  They  drop  upon  the  pastures  of  the  wilderness: 

And  the  hills  are  girded  with  joy. 

celebrated,  rules  in  righteousness — only  evil-doers  have  cause  to 
dread  His  might. 

9.  Some  would  render  '  Thou  hast  visited  the  land  and  made 
it  plentiful,'  finding  in  the  words  special  acknowledgement  of 
a  good  season.  So  Kirkpatrick,  who  joins  the  clause  greatly 
enriching'  it  with  the  former  part  of  the  verse. 

The  *  brook  of  God '  is  the  rain,  former  and  latter,  which  He 
sends  in  its  season.  In  the  last  line  render,  with  R.  V.  marg., 
'  for  sopreparest  Thou  the  earth,' 

10.  Render  ^Abundantly  watering  its  furrows,  levelling  its 
ridges,  Thou  softenest  it  with  showers,  its  upgrowth  Thou  dost 
bless.'  The  point  of  view  here  is  that  of  spring-time,  in  which  the 
effect  of  winter  rain  becomes  visible,  rather  than  of  autumn  when 
the  '  upgrowth '  is  complete.  But  the  following  verses  show  that 
the  Psalmist  is  offering  a  ..general  thanksgiving  for  what  Hooker 
called  '  God's  blessings  springing  out  of  my  mother  earth,*  and 
does  not  confine  himself  to  the  aspects  of  one  particular  season. 

11.  Lit.  'Thou  hast  crowned  the  year  of  thy  goodness'  ;  if 
this  be  the  meaning,  the  w^ords  point  to  the  harvest  as  the 
culmination  of  a  year  full  of  bounty.  The  translation  of  A.V.  and 
R,  V.  is  based  on  a  possible,  though  somewhat  doubtful,  con- 
struction of  the  Hebrew.  It  gives  the  better  sense,  and  some 
grammarians  defend  this  interpretation. 

thy  paths  drop  fatness,  i.  e.  the  steps  of  God's  path  as  He 
passes  over  the  land  are  marked  by  enriching  showers,  such  as 
cover  even  the  valley  of  weeping  with  blessings,  Ixxxiv.  6. 

12.  The  word  '  wilderness  '  {tnidbdr)  should  be  rightly  under- 


THE  PSALMS  65.  13—66.  i  317 

The  pastures  are  clothed  with  flocks ;  13 

The  valleys  also  are  covered  over  with  corn ; 
They  shout  for  joy,  they  alsTo  sing. 

For  the  Chief  Musician.     A  Song,  a  Psalm.  qq 

Make  a  joyful  noise  unto  God,  all  the  earth:  i 


stood.  Not  only  does  it  contain  'pastures,'  it  is  itself  the  open 
country,  the  very  land  of  pasturage,  as  distinguished  from  enclosed 
arable  '  fields.' 

13.  This  closing  description  is  full  of  graphic  metaphor.  Not 
only  are  the  hills  girded  with  garlands  of  rejoicing  (verse  12),  but 
the  white  fleeces  of  the  sheep  seem  to  clothe  the  meadows,  the 
sheltered  vales  between  the  hills  are  gaily  decked  with  wheat,  and 
together,  or  in  response  to  one  another,  they  shout  with  all  their 
heart,  *  yea,  they  sing ' !  Delitzsch  says  that  meadows  and  corn- 
fields cannot  sing,  and  that  *  the  expression  demands  men  as 
subject.'  This  is  an  unusually  prosaic  touch  on  the  part  of 
a  spirited  as  well  as  learned  commentator.  But  it  is  true  that  it 
needs  men  with  poetic  souls  to  hear  that  joyous  singing,  and  men 
with  devout  hearts  to  hear  the  hymn  which  the  hills  and  valleys 
raise  and  re-echo  to  God. 

Psalm  LXVI.     Thanksgiving  for  Deliverance. 

Is  the  deliverance  here  celebrated  personal,  or  national  ?  The 
first  twelve  verses  strike  the  national,  the  last  eight  the  personal 
note.  Some  interpreters  consider  that  the  two  elements  are 
distinct,  that  two  voices  are  heard,  or  even  that  two  Psalms  have 
been  combined.  Others,  e.  g.  Kirkpatrick,  '  hear  in  these  verses 
the  voice  of  the  responsible  and  representative  leader  of  the  nation 
(not  necessarily  himself  the  author  of  the  Psalm)  who  identifies 
its  fortunes  and  interests  with  his  own,'  while  the  prevailing 
modern  method  is  to  merge  the  personal  and  individual  element 
entirely  in  the  life  of  the  community.  On  this  last  supposition, 
the  church-nation  speaks  from  verse  13  onwards,  as  well  as  in  the 
former  part  of  the  Psalm.  With  this  last  view  we  cannot  agree  ; 
but,  given  the  individual  singer,  it  seems  the  most  natural  thing  in 
the  world  that  he  should  first  praise  God  for  national  mercies  and 
then  touch  upon  personal  blessings,  or  give  thanks  in  the  reverse 
order.  Only  it  is  to  be  borne  in  mind  (see  note  on  Ixv.  3)  that 
the  sense  of  common  national  life  was  stronger,  and  of  individual 
privilege  and  responsibility  much  weaker,  in  the  Jew  than  in 
modern  western  civilization. 

As   to  the  deliverance  referred  to,  the  choice  appears  to  lie 


3i8  THE   PSALMS  66.  2-5 

2  Sing  forth  the  glory  of  his  name : 
Make  his  praise  glorious. 

3  Say  unto  God,  How  terrible  are  thy  works  ! 

Through  the  greatness  of  thy  power  shall  thine  enemies 
submit  themselves  unto  thee. 

4  All  the  earth  shall  worship  thee, 
And  shall  sing  unto  thee ; 

They  shall  sing  to  thy  name.  [Selah 

5  Come,  and  see  the  works  of  God ; 

He  is  terrible  in  his  doing  toward  the  children  of  men. 


between  the  destruction  of  Sennacherib's  army  and  the  Return 
from  exile.  The  data  for  a  judgement  are  lacking  ;  but  here,  as 
in  Ps.  Ixv,  some  consider  that  the  universalism  of  the  Psalm 
demands  the  later  date,  a  view  we  do  not  share. 

The  first  stanza  (1-4)  calls  upon  all  lands  to  praise  and  acknow- 
ledge God,  for  (5-7)  He  has  proved  His  power  in  history,  notably 
at  the  time  of  the  Exodus.  The  third  stanza  (8-12)  calls  upon  the 
nations  to  recognize  the  fresh  intervention  by  which  God  has 
delivered  His  chosen  people,  while  in  the  last  two,  13-15  and 
16-20,  the  individual  speaker  pays  his  own  tribute  of  worship  to 
God  and  calls  upon  men  to  hear  his  testimony. 

1,  2.  The  whole  earth  is  to  be  the  concert-chamber  and  all  its 
inhabitants  the  chorus  ;  no  narrower  sphere  will  suffice  to  set 
forth  the  praises  of  God  for  the  deliverance  now  celebrated.  In 
the  last  line  the  verb  is  used  with  two  accusatives — a/Take  His 
praise  glory  or  '  Make  glory  His  praise.'  The  former  is  suggested 
by  the  order  of  the  words  in  Hebrew,  and  is  adopted  in  A.  V.  and 
R.  V. 

3.  For  terrible  see  IxvJ  5.  The  translation  *  submit  themselves' 
is  insufficient.  Render  '  Yield  feigned  obedience,'  R.  V.  marg. 
(P.  B.  V.  'be  found  liars  unto  thee'),  or  better,  'must  come 
cringing  unto  thee.'  The  same  phrase  is  used  in  Deut.  xxxiii.  29 
of  the  insincere  but  enforced  homage  which  Israel's  enemies  shall 
render  to  her. 

4.  The  invitation  is  here  turned  into  a  prophecy  ;  willing  or 
unwilling,  all  must  submit. 

5.  The  tone  is  that  of  a  prophetic  teacher  who  understands  the 
meaning  of  history  and  undertakes  to  explain  it  to  those  who  will 
listen.  'Come  and  see  *  corresponds  to  '  come  and  hear '  in  verse  16. 
The  address  in  this  case  is  to  the  nations,  who  are  bidden  to  study 
the  past  history  of  Israel  and  learn  its  lessons. 


THE   PSALMS  66.  6-9  319 

He  turned  the  sea  into  dry  land : 

They  went  through  the  river  on  foot : 

There  did  we  rejoice  in  him. 

He  ruleth  by  his  might  for  ever ; 

His  eyes  observe  the  nations  : 

Let  not  the  rebellious  exalt  themselves.  [Selah 

O  bless  our  God,  ye  peoples, 

And  make  the  voice  of  his  praise  to  be  heard ; 

Which  holdeth  our  soul  in  life, 

And  suffereth  not  our  feet  to  be  moved. 


6.  The  Exodus  is  with  Psalmists  and  prophets  a  standing 
illustration  of  God's  power  and  goodness.  The  passage  of  the 
Red  Sea  and  the  crossing  of  the  Jordan  are  examples  of  different 
ways  in  which  God  can  bring  His  people  past  or  over  obstacles. 

There  is  concrete  and  graphic  ;  it  points  as  with  the  finger 
to  a  landmark  in  history  always  conspicuous,  always  instructive. 
But  the  tense  of  the  following  verb  gives  some  difficulty.  It 
properly  means  (i)  '  let  us  rejoice,'  R.  V.  marg.,  which  fits  ill 
with  *  He  turned '  and  '  they  went,'  and  is  inconsistent  with  the 
idea  of  an  address  to  the  nations.  On  the  other  hand,  (2)  did  we 
rejoice,  while  making  excellent  sense  and  boldly  identifying  the 
Israel  of  the  Psalmist  with  the  Israel  of  the  Exodus,  does  some 
violence  to  grammar.  Still,  as  Delitzsch,  after  accepting  (i)  in  an 
earlier  edition,  in  a  later  edition  defends  (2),  adducing  2  Sam.  xxii. 
38  as  a  parallel,  it  may  be  considered  safe  to  adopt  it. 

7.  Here  the  tenses  express  general  truths  and  continuous 
Divine  action.  He  who  at  special  moments  vouchsafes  special 
manifestations  preserves  in  the  intervals  a  watchful  rule  against 
which  rebellious  nations  lift  their  heads,  or  tongues,  or  hands  in 
vain.  Thus  Isaiah  speaks  of  Sennacherib  as  lifting  his  eyes  and 
voice  not  so  much  against  Jerusalem  as  against  the  God  of  Jeru- 
salem, the  Holy  One  of  Israel ;  2  Kings  xix.  22. 

8.  Notice  that  the  address  is  still  to  the  nations  at  large,  although 
the  history  of  Israel  and  the  special  mercies  which  '  our  God  '  has 
shown  to  His  chosen  people  are  dwelt  upon.  The  tone  recalls 
Ps.  cxxvi.  2,  when  the  nations  said,  Jehovah  hath  done  great 
things  for  them. 

9.  iLoldeth  our  soul:  rather,  with  R.V.  marg.,  'putteth,'  or 
better,  'hath  set  our  soul  in  life.'  It  is  not  the  continuous  main- 
tenance of  life,  but  the  deliverance  from  danger  of  death  and  setting 
in  safety  that  is  commemorated.     For  a  similar  juxtaposition  of 


320  THE   PSALMS  66.  10-14 

10  For  thou,  O  God,  hast  proved  us : 
Thou  hast  tried  us,  as  silver  is  tried. 

11  Thou  broughtest  us  into  the  net; 

Thou  layedst  a  sore  burden  upon  our  loins. 

12  Thou  hast  caused  men  to  ride  over  our  heads ; 
We  went  through  fire  and  through  water ; 

But  thou  broughtest  us  out  into  a  wealthy  place. 

13  I  will  come  into  thy  house  with  burnt  offerings, 
I  will  pay  thee  my  vows, 

14  Which  my  hps  have  uttered, 

clauses,  in  which  the  keeping  of  the  feet  from  falling  is  equivalent 
to  preserving  from  death,  see  Ivi.  13. 

10.  This  and  the  two  following  verses  show  that  a  particular 
deliverance  is  referred  to.  Both  verbs  in  this  verse  are  used  of 
metals,  for  the  processes  of  assaying  and  smelting  ;  the  people 
have  been  passed  through  a  refiner's  fire,  a  furnace  of  terrible 
testing,  but  they  have  come  through  it  safely, 

11.  Here  punishment  rather  than  purification  is  described. 
Some  doubt  arises  as  to  the  word  translated  net,  some  versions 
and  commentators  reading  '  prison  * ;  also  as  to  the  one  rendered 
sore  burden.  The  latter  occurs  only  here  ;  the  Targum  under- 
stands it  to  mean  *  chain,'  and  Baethgen  raises  the  objection  that 
a  burden  is  not  laid  upon  the  loins.  The  LXX  and  Syriac 
translate  generally  'tribulations.'  There  is  no  sufficient  reason, 
however,  for  departing  from  R.  V. 

12.  For  the  strong  figure  of  the  first  line  see  Isa.  li.  23.  As 
the  vanquished  in  battle  are  crushed  under  the  horse-hoofs  and 
chariot-wheels  of  the  victorious  army,  so  Israel  had  suffered 
outrage  and  ignominy  at  the  hands  of  cruel  enemies.  Fire  and 
water  symbolize  dangers  'in  all  languages,  and  the  'place  of  abund- 
ance' stands  for  ease,  happiness,  prosperity.  See  xxiii.  5,  'my 
cup  is — abundance  ! ' 

13.  14.  Ewald's  conjecture  that  the  Psalm  from  this  point 
onwards  is  a  fragment  of  another  composition  has  this  in  its 
favour,  that  the  point  of  view  from  which  deliverance  is  henceforth 
regarded  is  markedly  different ;  see  Introduction.  Not  only  does 
the  first  person  singular  replace  the  plural,  but  the  attitude  of 
worship,  the  persons  addressed,  and  the  mention  of  '  iniquity,'  all 
suggest  an  altered  point  of  view.  But  though  there  is  difference 
between  the  two  parts  of  the  Psalm,  there  is  no  inconsistency. 
An  individual  Israelite,  presumably  a  representative  leader,  either 
priest  or  king,  here  speaks,  as  a  solo  may  follow  a  chorus.     He 


THE   PSALMS  66.  15-19  321 

And  my  mouth  hath  spoken,  when  I  was  in  distress. 

I  will  offer  unto  thee  burnt  offerings  of  fallings, 

With  the  incense  of  rams  ; 

I  will  offer  bullocks  with  goats.  [Selah 

Come,  and  hear,  all  ye  that  fear  God, 

And  I  will  declare  what  he  hath  done  for  my  soul. 

I  cried  unto  him  with  my  mouth, 

And  he  was  extolled  with  my  tongue. 

If  I  regard  iniquity  in  my  heart. 

The  Lord  will  not  hear : 

But  verily  God  hath  heard ; 

He  hath  attended  to  the  voice  of  my  prayer. 

presents  himself  in  the  name  of  the  people  before  the  altar  of  God, 
bringing  the  offerings  which  betoken  gratitude  and  consecration 
to  the  service  of  the  Great  Deliverer. 

15.  It  seems  hardly  necessary  to  examine  the  details  of  Levitical 
ritual,  in  order  to  determine  the  exact  significance  of  the  various 
sacrifices  mentioned  here.  '  Fatlings/  'rams,' 'goats,'  'bullocks' 
are  mentioned  generally  and  poeticallj^  as  in  Ps.  1  and  Isa.  i,  and 
in  their  accumulation  the  clauses  are  intended  to  express  ample 
and  abundant  oblations.  Some  have  sought,  however,  to  show 
that  the  words  are  carefully  chosen,  and  that  the  reference  is  to 
particular  sacrifices  '  offered  by  the  nation  or  its  leaders,  not  by  an 
ordinary  private  individual '  (Kirkpatrick). 

16.  The  address  in  this  verse  is  to  them  '  that  fear  God,'  and 
the  dehverance  is  a  private  and  personal  one,  '  for  my  soul.' 
Taken  in  relation  to  the  context,  it  must  mean  that  people  of  all 
nations  are  to  listen  to  the  story  of  what  God  has  done  for  Israel, 
Per  my  soul  in  modern  phraseology  has  a  distinctively  personal 
and  spiritual  significance  ;  here  it  means,  for  my  life  when  it  was 
in  peril. 

17.  I  cried,  in  supplication;  and  'high  praise  was  under  my 
tongue '  (R.  V.  marg.),  as  we  say  *  on  the  lips '  or  '  on  the  tip  of  the 
tongue,'  ready  to  burst  forth  in  acknowledgement  of  the  answer 
which  was  sure  to  follow. 

18.  19.  Here  again  the  marginal  is  better  than  the  textual 
rendering.  Read,  '  If  I  had  regarded  iniquity  .  .  .  the  Lord 
would  not  hear.'  To  contemplate  evil  in  the  heart  while  high 
praise  of  God  is  on  the  tongue  is  to  provoke  severe  Divine  dis- 
pleasure. The  Psalmist  claims  that  he  had  a  '  single  eye  '  (Maft. 
vi.  22),  one  that  'looked  right  on  '  (Prov.  iv.  25),  that  he  had  not 

Y 


322  THE   PSALMS  6G.  20—67.  i 

20  Blessed  be  God, 

Which  hath  not  turned  away  my  prayer,  nor  his  mercy 
from  me. 

67       For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  on  stringed  instruments.     A  Psalm, 

a  Song. 

I  God  be  merciful  unto  us,  and  bless  us, 
A?id  cause  his  face  to  shine  upon  us ;  [Selah 

a  'double  heart'  (Ps.  xii.  2),  hence  God  has  listened  to  his  praj'-er. 
It  was  the  absence  of  'simplicity  and  godly  sincerity*  in  the 
religion  of  Israel  of  which  the  prophets  had  so  often  to  complain, 
and  which  is  especially  condemned  in  Ps.  1. 

20.  The  Psalmist  closes  with  an  ascription  of  praise  to  God  for 
His  mercy,  not  with  a  complacent  self-justification  on  the  score  of 
his  own  righteousness.  He  does  not  regard  God's  hearing  of 
prayer  as  due  to  him  for  his  integrity,  but  as  an  act  of  grace  for 
which  the  Divine  name  should  be  praised.  Fuller  praises  '  David's 
excellent  logic,'  who,  '  when  he  should  have  clapped  the  crown 
on  his  own,  puts  it  on  God's  head.'  The  logic  of  saints  is  not 
that  of  the  schools.  A  man  who  would  keep  debtor  and  creditor 
account  with  the  Almighty  concerning  his  own  virtue  and  the 
hearing  of  his  prayers  would  be  bankrupt  from  start  to  finish. 
Grace  begins  and  continues,  thanksgiving  should  end  the  history. 

Psalm  LXVII.     A  Festal  Thanksgiving. 

A  short  and  simple,  but  triumphant  and  comprehensive,  song  of 
praise.  It  blends  prayer  and  thanksgiving,  like  the  two  pre- 
ceding Psalms,  and  was  intended  for  some  temple  festival, 
perhaps  the  Feast  of  Tabernacles,  after  a  year  of  exceptional 
increase.  But  as  in  Pss.  Ixv  and  Ixvi,  God's  hand  is  traced  in  the 
nation's  history,  as  well  a^  in  the  processes  of  nature,  and  He  is 
praised  as  the  God  of  the  whole  earth  as  well  as  of  Israel.  As 
a  canticle  for  the  church,  or  the  nation,  or  the  world,  as  a  thanks- 
giving at  harvest-time,  or  a  prayer  for  foreign  missions,  this 
Psalm  is  almost  equally  appropriate,  and  it  has  been  thus  widely 
and  variously  used  in  the  Christian  worship  for  centuries.  The 
Deits  misereatur  is  never  out  of  place. 

For  the  words  song-  and  string-ed  instruments  in  the  title, 
see  Introd.  pp.  4  and  15. 

1.  An  echo  of  the  priestly  blessing.  Numb.  vi.  24,  with  the 
word  EloJnm  instead  of  Yalnveh,  as  elsewhere  in  this  Elohistic 
collection.  The  Selah  in  this  verse  seems  awkwardly  placed,  if 
it  implies  an  interlude. 


THE   PSALMS  G7.  2-5  323 

That  thy  way  may  be  known  upon  earth,  3 

Thy  saving  health  among  all  nations. 

Let  the  peoples  praise  thee,  O  God ;  3 

Let  all  the  peoples  praise  thee. 

O  let  the  nations  be  glad  and  sing  for  joy :  4 

For  thou  shalt  judge  the  peoples  with  equity, 

And  govern  the  nations  upon  earth.  [Selah 

Let  the  peoples  praise  thee,  O  God ;  5 

Let  all  the  peoples  praise  thee. 

The  earth  hath  yielded  her  increase  :  0 

2.  The  idea  meets  us  again  which  has  been  so  prominent  in 
Pss.  Ixv  and  Ixvi,  that  there  is  a  close  connexion  between  God's 
work  for  His  own  people  and  the  conversion  of  the  nations  at 
large  to  His  service.  They  have  but  to  be  made  acquainted  with 
what  He  has  done  for  Israel  and  they  will  learn  to  trust  Him  for 
themselves.  In  a  fuller  sense  than  the  Psalmist  imagined  this  has 
come  to  pass. 

By  way  is  meant  the  Divine  purpose  and  its  accomplishment  in 
history.  Saving  health  is  an  archaism  for  salvation,  but  the 
phrase  is  one  which  all  would  be  loth  to  lose,  and  it  precisely 
expresses  what  '  all  nations '  need. 

3,  4.  Commentators  differ  as  to  the  tenses  here  and  elsewhere 
in  the  Psalm.  Some  understand  them  as  presents,  some  as  futures, 
whilst  others — the  majority  and  the  best — interpret  them  as  wishes 
or  prayers  throughout.  In  these  two  verses  there  can  be  little 
doubt  that  this  is  the  meaning. 

The  nations  are  summoned  to  give  thanlss  ;  for  if  they  w^ill 
render  their  allegiance  to  the  God  of  Israel  they  shall  gladly  prove 
the  equity  and  excellence  of  the  Divine  government.  That  'leading* 
which  has  been  so  marked  in  the  history  of  the  chosen  people  shall 
be  granted  as  a  boon  to  all. 

5.  Refrain  as  in  verse  3,  somewhat  irregularly  as  it  may  seem, 
but  aptly  placed. 

6,  7.  In  these  closing  verses  R.  V,  changes  the  rendering  of  the 
tenses  from  optatives  to  futures.  We  think  that  the  instinct  v/hich 
leads  us  to  look  for  a  confident  expression  of  faith  and  hope  before 
the  Psalm  closes  is  right.  The  only  question  is  where  the  change 
should  come.  Kirkpatrick  suggests  that  it  might  begin  in  verse  5, 
and  would  certainly  effect  it  in  verses  6  and  7.  The  Revisers  seem 
to  have  hit  the  mark  best.  The  refrain  should  be  kept  as  a  praj^er  : 
then  comes  the  glad  acknowledgement  of  a  fruitful  harvest,  in 
itself  a  token  of  Divine  favour — the  earth   hath   yielded   her 

Y    2 


324  THE   PSALMS  67.  7—68.  i 

God,  even  our  own  God,  shall  bless  us. 
7  God  shall  bless  us ; 
And  all  the  ends  of  the  earth  shall  fear  him. 

68  For  the  Chief  Musician.    A  Psalm  of  David,  a  Song. 

I  Let  God  arise,  let  his  enemies  be  scattered ; 


increase ;  and,  lastly,  the  Psalmist  breaks  forth  in  assured  pro- 
phecy that  God's  blessing  will  continue  to  abide  upon  His  own 
people,  and  in  and  through  them  the  whole  earth  shall  be  filled 
with  the  glory  of  God. 

Psalm  LXVIII.     A  Hymn  of  Victory. 

One  of  the  greatest  of  the  Psalms,  notable  alike  for  magnificence 
of  conception  and  sustained  vigour  in  the  presentment  of  lofty 
thought.  The  subject  is  God  as  the  Leader  of  the  hosts  of  His 
people  marching  through  conflict  to  victory,  and  passing  to  the 
sanctuary  in  triumphal  procession.  All  commentators  are  agreed 
in  recognizing  the  grandeur  of  the  Psalm  and  the  splendour  of  its 
diction.  Hupfeld,  who  is  not  given  to  superlatives,  describes  it 
as  *  a  perfect  hymn,  the  most  glowing,  the  most  spirited,  and  the 
most  powerful  which  exists  in  the  whole  Psalter.'  But  all  are 
equally  convinced  of  its  difficulty.  Delitzsch  quotes  from  an 
Italian  Jewish  poet,  a  contemporary  of  Dante,  who  describes  all 
the  commentators  on  the  Psalms  as  gathered  in  Paradise  before 
King  David  to  contend  for  a  prize,  '  When  he  assigned  them  all  the 
68th  Psalm  as  their  task,  what  a  thick  vapour  arose  ! '  Christian 
interpreters  have  not  been  more  successful.  The  dates  assigned 
to  the  Psalm  spread  over  wellnigh  a  thousand  years,  and  include 
authors  and  occasions  the  most  diverse.  A  composition  which 
has  been  assigned  by  scholarly  and  able  critics  alike  to  the  time 
of  David,  of  Jehoshaphat;,  and  of  Hezekiah,  to  the  Return  from 
Captivity,  to  the  age  of  Nehemiah,  the  early  Greek  period,  and  the 
war  between  Ptolemy  Philometor  and  Alexander  Balas,  B.C.  146, 
cannot  be  easy  to  place  and  characterize.  Cheyne  says,  '  Many 
psalms,  no  doubt,  can  be  fairly  well  understood  without  fixing 
their  date,  but  certainly  not  the  68th.'  If  this  be  true — which 
we  do  not  admit — the  grandest  of  the  Psalms  is  also  unintelligible. 

The  chief  reasons  for  this  difficulty  of  interpretation  and 
diversity  of  view  are  the  variety  and  comprehensiveness  of  the 
allusions  and  quotations,  and  the  obscurity  of  certain  parts  of 
the  text.  It  is  studded  with  parallel  passages  and  phrases  which 
bring  it  into  relation  with  other  Scriptures — 'all  that  is  most 
glorious  in  the  literature  of  the  days  of  old  is  concentrated  in  it' — 


THE   PSALMS  68.  i  325 

Let  them  also  that  hate  him  flee  before  him. 


yet  there  is  nothing  suggestive  of  the  copyist,  it  is  full  of  verve, 
fire,  and  vigour.  The  language  in  places  is  obscure  through  its 
very  energy,  and  modern  critics,  who  indulge  freely  in  the  luxury 
of  textual  emendation,  intersperse  numerous  asterisks  in  their 
renderings  of  this  Psalm  to  indicate  that  in  their  view  the  text 
is  hopeless.  Again,  whilst  characteristics  of  this  kind  usually 
mark  an  early  date,  some  words  found  in  the  Psalm  with  their 
Aramaic  affinities  point  to  a  comparatively  late  period. 

Nevertheless,  if  we  are  not  too  exacting,  it  will  be  found  quite 
possible  to  understand,  enjoy,  and  spiritually  to  appreciate  this 
noble  Psalm.  Its  general  meaning  is  clear,  some  obscurities  of 
detail  may  be  removed,  v/ithin  certain  limits  its  date  may  probably 
be  fixed,  while  the  main  lessons  concerning  God,  His  waj's,  His 
purposes,  His  people,  and  His  glory,  which  are  here  embodied  in 
lofty  poetry,  shine  clear  as  stars  in  the  nightly  Eastern  sky. 

It  seems  to  us  impossible  to  maintain  the  theory  of  Davidic 
authorship.  True,  the  reign  of  David  would  furnish  most  suitable 
occasions  for  its  use,  whether  the  removal  of  the  ark  to  Zion,  or 
one  of  the  illustrious  victories  of  the  period,  whilst  the  mention  of 
the  tribes  Benjamin  and  Judah,  Zabulon  and  Naphtali,  would  be 
more  appropriate  then  than  at  any  later  period.  But  the  religious 
ideas,  some  detailed  expressions,  and  the  general  literary  affinities 
of  the  Psalm  point  to  a  much  later  date.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  triumphant  tone  of  the  Psalm  and  its  confident  anticipations 
of  the  future  make  it  very  unlikely  that  it  was  written  so  late  as 
the  time  of  the  Ptolemies,  in  the  second  century  b.c. — a  date 
improbable  also  on  other  grounds.  There  remain  the  period  of 
the  later  monarchy  and  a  lime  soon  after  the  Exile.  No  suitable 
occasion  presents  itself  in  the  time  of  Jehoshaphat  or  Hezekiah. 
The  allusions  are  not  to  Moab  and  Edom  on  the  one  hand,  nor  to 
Assyria  on  the  other,  whilst  the  numerous  parallels  with  the 
second  Isaiah  would  not  be  sufficiently  accounted  for. 

We  agree,  therefore,  with  some  of  the  best  modern  critics  in 
understanding  the  Psalm  as  an  outburst  of  thanksgiving  and  hope 
awakened  in  the  minds  of  the  Jews  by  what  seemed  to  many  of 
them  the  new  birth  of  the  nation  in  the  Return  from  Captivity. 
That  such  ideas  and  hopes  prevailed  is  certain,  Ps.  cxviii  and 
many  of  the  *  Pilgrim  '  group  abundantly  testify  to  this.  If  those 
hopes  were  only  in  part  fulfilled,  and  the  aspirations  of  the  Psalm 
very  imperfectly  realized,  such  disappointments  shadowed  the 
whole  history  of  Israel.  The  date  suggested  would  account  for 
the  close  parallels  between  the  Psalm  and  Isa.  xl-lxvi,  which  form 
a  fundamental  factor  in  the  literary  problem.  The  chief  objections 
to  this  view  are  removed  if  we  understand  the  Psalm  as  ideal, 


326  THE   PSALMS  68.  2 

2  As  smoke  is  driven  away,  so  drive  them  away 


retrospective,  and  prospective,  treating  tlie  whole  history  of  the 
nation  from  a  prophetic  standpoint.  It  does  not  follow,  because 
four  tribes  are  named,  that  they  existed  distinct  in  the  Psalmist's 
time  ;  nor,  because  Egypt  is  alluded  to  as  an  enemy,  that  war 
with  Egypt  was  actually  going  on.  Isaiah  shows  how  *  Rahab ' 
had  come  to  stand  as  a  typical  name  for  the  world-powers  oppress- 
ing Israel,  and  the  mention  of  the  temple  at  Jemsalem  in  verse  29 
is  clearly  symbolic.  The  Psalmist  anticipates  the  homage  which 
kings  are  to  render  to  Jehovah  in  the  glorified  city  and  sanctuary 
of  the  future. 

Read  thus,  the  Psalm  is  intelligible,  appropriate,  and  effective. 
But  whensoever  composed,  inspired  by  whatsoever  reminiscences 
of  past  victory  or  expectations  of  returning  prosperity,  the  Psalm 
stands  as  a  monument  of  the  invincible  faith  and  inextinguishable 
hopes  of  Israel,  and  a  prophecy  of  spiritual  glories  in  part  realized, 
in  part  yet  to  come.  The  outline  of  thought  may  easily  be  followed, 
and  is  not  affected  by  the  view  taken  of  occasion  and  authorship. 
Verses  1-6  form  an  introduction  in  which  God  appears  as  Leader 
and  Redeemer  of  His  people,  who  are  bidden  to  prepare  the  way 
of  the  Conqueror.  In  7-18  past  history  is  reviewed  :  the  wonders 
of  the  Exodus,  the  journey  through  the  wilderness,  the  entry  into 
Canaan,  the  conquest  of  its  inhabitants,  and  the  choice  of  Zion  as 
God's  special  abode,  are  successively  described  in  highly  poetical, 
but  not  exaggerated  language.  The  latter  half  of  the  Psalm,  19-35, 
deals  with  the  manifestations  of  the  present  and  the  hopes  of  the 
future.  But  the  present  is  lightly  touched  on,  and  only  in  idealistic 
phrase,  hence  it  is  the  less  necessary  to  ascertain  the  exact  epoch 
referred  to.  One  stanza,  24-27,  describes  a  festal  procession  to  the 
temple,  symbolic  of  the  glory  of  the  conquering  King,  and  this 
leads  on  to  a  picture  of  the  time  when  nil  kings  and  peoples 
shall  pay  Him  homage,  28-^31.  A  closing  stanza,  pitched  in  sublime 
key,  calls  upon  the  nations  of  the  whole  earth  to  praise  and  serve 
the  God  of  Israel. 

The  Psalm  is  known  in  Christendom,  from  its  opening  words  in 
Latin,  as  Exsurgat  Dens.  It  has  been  used  as  the  battle-cry  of  the 
warrior  and  the  watchword  of  the  down-trodden  and  oppressed. 
It  has  been  chanted  bj'  Crusaders  and  Huguenots,  by  Covenanters 
and  Ironsides.  In  the  Christian  Church  it  aptly  strikes  the  keynote 
for  the  worship  of  Whit-Sunday,  and  alike  by  its  general  strain 
and  by  certain  notable  phrases  which  distinguish  it  Ps.  Ixviii  is 
still  fitted  for  use  as  an  inspiring  anthem  for  those  who  look  for 
the  coming  of  the  Kingdom  of  God. 

1.  The  Psalm  begins  with  a  quotation.  With  slight  modifica- 
tions this  verse  is  a  reproduction  of  the  words  of  Moses,  recorded 


THE   PSALMS  68.  3,4  327 

As  wax  melteth  before  the  fire, 

So  let  the  wicked  perish  at  the  presence  of  God. 

But  let  the  righteous  be  glad ;  let  them  exult  before  God  :  3 

Yea,  let  them  rejoice  with  gladness. 

Sing  unto  God,  sing  praises  to  his  name :  4 

Cast  up  a  high  way  for  him  that  rideth  through  the 

deserts ; 
His  name  is  jah  ;  and  exult  ye  before  him. 


in  Numb.  x.  35,  used  when  the  ark  led  the  children  of  Israel  on 
their  journeys  in  the  wilderness.  The  name  Jehovah,  however, 
here  becomes  Elohira,  and  the  second  person  imperative  is  changed 
into  the  optative.  Hence,  instead  of  'Arise  Jehovah'  we  read 
Let  God  arise.  Some  interpreters  translate  this  and  the  co-ordin- 
ate tenses  that  follow  as  presents,  others  as  futures.  But  the 
majority  of  versions  and  commentators  are  probably  right  in  under- 
standing the  opening  verses  as  a  prayer  that  the  ancient  watchword 
of  Israel  on  the  march  may  receive  a  fresh  realization. 

2,  3.  For  the  Homeric  comparison  of  vanishing  like  smoke,  see 
Hos.  xiii.  3  ;  and  for  the  melting  of  wax,  Mic.  i.  4.  Wicked  and 
righteous  correspond  here  to  the  heathen  and  Israel  respectively, 
not  to  classes  of  persons  within  the  nation  itself. 

4.  Those  who  belong  to  the  company  of  the  faithful,  who  are 
entering  upon  this  new  wilderness-journey  under  the  guidance  of 
that  presence  which  the  Ark  symbolized,  are  bidden  to  chant  the 
praises  of  their  great  Leader  and  to  prepare  the  way  for  His  ad- 
vent. Cast  up  a  Mgli  way :  it  is  impossible  to  miss  the  parallel 
with  Isa.  xl.  3,  where  the  voice  heard  b^^  the  prophet's  inner  ear 
bade  the  exiles  to  prepare  in  the  wilderness  a  way  for  Him  who 
was  about  to  lead  them  home.  In  Isa.  Ivii.  14  and  Ixii.  10  also 
the  same  figure  is  used,  in  each  case  with  the  addition  '  Gather 
out  the  stones.'  An  Oriental  monarch  on  his  journeys  needs  such 
load-makers  or  road-menders  to  go  before  him,  and  unless  men 
remove  the  human  hindrances  to  God's  coming  He  will  not  appear. 
The  translation  '  Extol  him  that  rideth  upon  the  heavens'  (A.  V.) 
follows  the  Targum :  other  ancient  versions  render  '  Prepare  the 
way,'  LXX  and  Vulgate  instead  of  '  the  deserts '  read  '  the 
West.' 

JAK  is  a  shortened  poetical  form  of  Yahweh,  compare  the 
well-known  word  Hallelu-jah.  Delitzsch  notes  that  '  the  whole 
cornucopia  of  Divine  names  has  been  poured  out  upon  this  Psalm.' 
Eh/iim  occurs  twenty-six  times.  Adonaisix,  while  Yahiveh,Shaddai, 


328  THE   PSALMS  68.  5-8 

5  A  father  of  the  fatherless,  and  a  judge  of  the  widows, 
Is  God  in  his  holy  habitation. 

6  God  setteth  the  solitary  in  families : 

He  bringeth  out  the  prisoners  into  prosperity : 
But  the  rebellious  dwell  in  a  parched  land. 

7  O  God,  when  thou  wentest  forth  before  thy  people, 
When  thou  didst  march  through  the  wilderness  ;    [Selah 

8  The  earth  trembled, 

5.  The  protection  of  the  fatherless  and  widow  was  a  standing 
illustration  of  righteous  and  merciful  government.  These  helpless 
ones  were  cared  for  by  the  legislation  of  the  Book  of  the  Covenant, 
Exod.  xxii.  22  ;  and  when  the  prophet  urged  the  people  to  reform 
their  ways  he  bade  them  to  '  judge  the  fatherless,  plead  for  the 
widow,'  Isa.  i.  17.  Hence  in  Ps.  cxlvi.  7,  9  a  proof  that  God 
'  executeth  judgement  for  the  oppressed  *  is  that  he  *  upholdeth 
the  fatherless  and  widow.'  Holy  habitation  here  means  heaven, 
as  in  Deut.  xxvi.  15  ;  Isa.  Ixiii.  15  (where,  however,  a  different 
word  is  used). 

6.  These  general  descriptions  of  God's  character  and  methods 
are  intended  to  prepare  the  way  for  the  subject  proper  of  the 
Psalm.  An  avant-courier  or  herald  declares  the  virtues  and 
excellences  of  the  coming  King. 

Render,  '  maketh  the  solitary  to  dwell  in  a  home '  (see  R.  V. 
marg.).  The  deliverance  of  prisoners  (Ps.  cxlvi.  7)  has  been 
characteristic  of  Israel's  God  from  the  time  of  the  Exodus  onwards, 
and  is  now  about  to  receive  new  illustration.  The  word  rebellious 
is  understood  by  some  to  refer  to  heathen  opponents ;  others 
apply  it  to  stubborn  Israelites,  who  would  not  believe  God's 
word,  and  did  not  learn  the  lessons  of  exile  (Isa.  Ixv.  2)  ;  but  it  is 
better  to  take  the  statement  generally  as  a  characteristic  of  the 
Divine  moral  government,  without  any  specific  reference. 

7.  Again  a  quotation,  with  some  variations  of  phraseology :  in 
this  instance  from  the  song  of  Deborah,  Judges  v.  4,  5.  The 
chief  changes  consist  in  the  omission  of  the  names  Seir  and 
Edom,  and,  as  before,  the  substitution  of  Elohim  for  Jehovah. 

It  is  the  object  of  the  Psalmist  in  this  stanza  to  describe  the 
beginning  of  God's  march  to  victory,  as  seen  in  the  history  of 
Israel.  He  goes  back  to  the  exodus  from  Egypt  and  borrows 
Deborah's  striking  words  to  prove  that  the  wanderings  of  Israel 
in  the  wilderness  were  but  the  beginning  of  a  journey  under  the 
immediate  leadership  of  God. 

8.  Here,  as  in  Ps.  xviii,  Hab.   iii,  and  elsewhere,  storm  and 


THE   PSALMS  G8.  9-11  329 

The  heavens  also  dropped  at  the  presence  of  God : 
Even  yon  Sinai  trevibled  at  the  presence  of  God,  the  God 

of  Israel. 
Thou,  O  God,  didst  send  a  plentiful  rain,  9 

Thou  didst  confirm  thine  inheritance,  when  it  was  weary. 
Thy  congregation  dwelt  therein  :  10 

Thou,  O  God,  didst  prepare  of  thy  goodness  for  the  poor. 
The  Lord  giveth  the  word  :  1 1 


earthquake  are  the  tokens  of  the  Divine  presence.  Compare 
especially  the  description  of  the  scene  at  the  giving  of  the  law  in 
Exod.  xix.  Yon  Sinai :  the  demonstrative  pronoun  is  very 
expressive  ;  it  was  at  that  mountain  that  the  Divine  manifestation 
reached  its  climax.  R.  V.  rightly  supplies  the  verb  trembled 
from  the  first  line.  The  description  of  the  last  line  loses  force 
from  the  change  of  Jehovah  to  Elohim  the  God  of  Israel. 

9.  Render,  '  With  a  bountiful  rain,  O  God,  Thou  didst  be- 
sprinkle thine  inheritance,  and  when  it  was  weary  Thou  didst 
refresh  it.*  The  rain  has  been  understood  of  the  dropping  of  the 
manna  (compare  Exod.  xvi.  4,  '  I  will  rain  bread  from  heaven  for 
you  '),  of  the  showers  of  quails  in  the  wilderness,  and  again  of  the 
preparation  of  the  w^cll-watered  land  of  Canaan  to  be  Israel's 
home  after  their  wanderings.  Neither  of  these  explanations  is 
quite  satisfactory.  Israel  has  not  yet  arrived  at  Canaan  ;  it  is  the 
provision  in  the  wilderness  which  is  being  described,  and  rain  is 
best  understood  of  all  the  manifold  blessings  received  during  the 
journeys  of  forty  years. 

10.  Congrregation,  marg.  '  troop,'  has  been  variously  under- 
stood. The  word  in  the  Hebrew  is  ambiguous,  like  our  word 
'creatures.'  But,  though  unusual,  it  may  be  applied  here  to 
Israel  as  God's  living  family,  needing  his  care  and  described  in 
the  second  line  as  the  poor,  or  the  '  afflicted.' 

A  difficulty  arises  over  the  word  therein,  for  which  no  ante- 
cedent appears  to  be  expressed.  It  may  be  understood  (i)  of  the 
land  of  Canaan,  as  too  well-known  to  need  special  designation  ; 
(2)  of  the  *  inheritance,'  i.  e.  the  wilderness,  as  the  temporary 
dwelling-place  of  God's  people.  But  it  seems  best  (3)  to  understand 
*  inheritance'  of  the  people,  i.  e.  the  'congregation  of  Israel,'  and 
the  word  *  therein '  will  find  an  antecedent  in  the  sense  though 
not  in  the  grammar.  It  will  then  refer  generally  to  that  sojourn 
in  the  wilderness  which  is  the  subject  of  the  whole  stanza. 

11.  A  graphic  and  striking  transition  to  the  next  stage  in  God's 
march  to  victory.     The   conquest    of  Canaan   as  the   Land   of 


330  THE   PSALMS  68.  12,  13 

The  women  that  publish  the  tidings  are  a  great  host. 

1 2  Kings  of  armies  flee,  they  flee  : 

And  she  that  tarrieth  at  home  divideth  the  spoil. 

13  Will  ye  lie  among  the  sheepfolds, 

As  the  wings  of  a  dove  covered  with  silver, 
And  her  pinions  with  yellow  gold  ? 


Promise  is  dealt  with  in  stanza  n-14.  R.  V.  is  right  in  rendering 
the  verb  by  historic  presents,  the  Lord  glveth,  they  flee,  &c.  It 
is  enough  for  God  to  give  the  word  :  He  speaketh,  and  it  is  done. 
The  foe  and  the  battle  are  not  described,  the  next  sound  that  we 
hear  is  the  song  of  the  women  celebrating  the  victory.  For 
examples  of  this  compare  Miriam's  song  with  the  timbrel  in  Exod. 
XV.  20,  Deborah's  song  in  Judges  v,  and  the  rejoicings  of  the 
women  over  David's  slaughter  of  Goliath  in  i  Sam.  xviii.  6,  7. 

12.  This  verse  and  the  two  that  follow  are  understood  by  some 
commentators  as  extracts  from  old  traditional  war-songs,  such  as 
that  of  Deborah.  This  theory  would  help  to  explain  the  obscurity  of 
verses  13  and  14,  and  verse  12  might  well  form  part  of  such  a  paean. 
But  it  is  simpler  to  understand  it  as  part  of  the  Psalmist's  own 
graphic  word-painting.  This  is  the  only  case  in  which  tscbaot/i, 
liie  word  here  translated  armies,  and  used  in  the  title  'Jehovah 
of  hosts,'  is  applied  to  heathen  forces.  The  reference  is  to  the 
Kings  of  Canaan  mentioned  in  Judges  v.  19,  and  the  division  of 
the  spoil  is  vividly  described  in  verse  30. 

13.  The  difficulty  of  this  verse  arises  from  its  brevity  and  the 
use  of  ellipsis.  The  phrase  of  A.  V.  '  lien  among  the  pots  '  points 
to  Israel's  servitude  in  Egypt,  which  is  supposed  to  be  contrasted 
with  the  brightness  and  happiness  of  their  sojourn  in  the 
Promised  Land.  But  it  is  now  generally  agreed  that  it  should  be 
rendered  lie  aiuong'  the  sheepfolds,  with  an  allusion  to  Reuben's 
'  sitting  among  the  sheepfolds  to  listen  to  the  piping  of  the  flocks  ' 
in  Judges  v.  i6.  The  figure  of  the  dove  basking  in  the  sunshine, 
with  the  light  upon  her  wings  gleaming  like  gold  and  silver,  is 
also  generally  understood  as  describing  a  delightful  condition  of 
peace  and  prosperity.  But  the  question  is,  how  to  fit  in  these 
references  with  the  context,  R.  V.  understands  this  verse  to 
contain  an  indignant  remonstrance,  like  that  of  Deborah  against 
Reuben,  will  ye  lie  in  such  delicious  but  inglorious  ease  enjoying 
the  brilliant  sunshine  of  prosperity,  instead  of  coming  to  the  help 
of  the  Lord  against  the  mighty  ?  But  such  a  reproof,  richly 
deserved  in  Judges  v,  seems  here  uncalled  for  and  meaningless. 
Kirkpatrick  renders,  '  Though  ye  may  lie,'  understanding  the 
connexion  of  thought  to  be,  that  though  some  Israelites  might  be 


THE  PSALMS  68.  h,  15  331 

When  the  Ahiiighty  scattered  kings  therein, 
//  ivas  as  whe7i  it  snoweth  in  Zahnon. 
A  mountain  of  God  is  the  mountain  of  Bashan  ; 
An  high  mountain  is  the  mountain  of  Bashan. 

careless  and  slothful,  yet  the  dove's  wings  are  covered  with  silver, 
&c.,  i.e.  God  gives  the  blessings  of  prosperity  in  spite  of  man's 
unfaithfulness. 

Better,  in  our  judgement,  is  the  rendering  of  R.  V.  marg. 
'  When  ye  lie  among  the  sheepfolds,  It  is  as  the  wings,'  &c.,  i.  e. 
after  the  victories  described  in  verse  12  have  been  gained,  idyllic 
prosperity  may  be  enjoyed,  life  is  tranquil,  and  the  colours  of  the 
landscape  brilliant.  '  Israel  is  God's  turtle-dove,  and  accordingly 
the  new  prosperity  is  compared  to  the  play  of  colour  on  the  wings 
of  a  dove  basking  in  the  sunshine,'  Delitzsch. 

14.  Another  obscure  verse,  probably  containing  allusions  in- 
telligible to  contemporaries,  but  not  to  us.  The  name  Shaddai, 
Almighty,  rare  in  the  Psalter,  perhaps  points  to  this  verse  being 
a  fragment  of  an  early   poem. 

therein  means  in  the  land  of  Canaan,  but  this  word  may 
also  go  to  show  that  the  line  is  torn  from  another  context. 

It  was  as  when  it  snoweth  in  Zalmon.  R.  V.  has  supplied 
certain  words  to  indicate  that  a  simile  is  intended.  The  compari- 
son may  be  to  the  whitening  of  many  bones  upon  the  plains,  or 
to  the  scattering  of  all  kinds  of  equipments  abandoned  in  hurried 
flight,  or  to  the  rush  of  troops  and  leaders  in  headlong  confusion, 
like  the  whirling  of  snowflakes  in  a  storm.  The  marginal 
rendering,  '  It  snowed  in  Zalmon,'  implies  that  a  literal  storm 
took  place,  like  the  hailstorm  at  Beth-horon  recorded  in  Joshua 
X.  II,  which  helped  to  complete  the  rout.  This,  however,  is 
prosaic  ;  the  explanation  of  R.  V.  text  is  much  to  be  preferred, 
and  is  adopted  here  without  a  discussion  of  the  scores  of  other 
interpretations  that  have  been  given  to  the  verse,  the  enumeration 
of  which  would  only  perplex  the  reader. 

Zalmon  is  the  name  of  a  wooded  hill  near.  Shechem,  sec 
Judges  ix.  48.  The  word  means  'dark' — compare  Montenegro, 
Schwarzwald,  and  the  Black  Mountains  of  Wales — and  if  this 
particular  mountain  be  intended,  it  is  perhaps  mentioned  as 
furnishing  a  striking  background  for  the  snow-scene, 

15.  The  Psalmist  proceeds  to  describe  the  capital  of  the  newly- 
conquered  land,  the  place  where  God  deigned  to  fix  His  abode. 
It  was  not  such  a  spot  as  might  have  been  expected,  Mount  Her- 
mon,  for  instance,  that  glorious  *  mountain  of  summits  '  (R.  V. 
marg.),  with  its  three  peaks  more  than  9,000  feet  high,  which  in 
its  majesty  looks  down  upon  Bashan  and  dominates  the  v/holc 


532  THE   PSALMS  68.  16-18 

lO  Why  look  ye  askance,  ye  high  mountains, 

At  the  mountain  which  God  hath  desired  for  his  abode  ? 
Yea,  the  Lord  will  dwell  in  it  for  ever. 

1 7  The  chariots  of  God  are  twenty  thousand,  even  thousands 

upon  thousands : 
The  Lord  is  among  them,  as  in  Sinai,  in  the  sanctuary. 

18  Thou  hast  ascended  on  high,  thou  hast  led  thy  captivity 

captive ; 


north  of  Palestine.  The  legends  of  many  countries  locate  the 
abode  of  the  gods  among  the  mountains,  Olympus,  for  example, 
but  Jehovah  has  chosen  a  comparatively  insignificant  hill  for  His 
dwelling-place. 

16.  The  loftier  mountains  are  represented  as  looking  enviously 
upon  the  humble  Zion,  the  place  of  which  God  said,  *  This  is  my 
resting-place  for  ever :  Here  will  I  dwell ;  for  I  have  desired 
it,'  Ps.  cxxxii.  14.  The  rendering  of  A.  V.  '  Why  leap  ye  ?  *  P.  B.  V. 

*  Why  hop  ye  so,  ye  high  hills  ?  *  follows  the  Targum,  which  is 
almost  certainly  in  error.  The  word  occurs  only  here,  but  other 
ancient  versions  have  for  the  most  part  caught  the  right  meaning, 

*  Why  look  ye  jealously  ? ' 

\1.  The  glory  of  the  Conqueror  in  His  triumphal  entry  is 
described.  His  chariots  are  'myriad-fold':  lit.  'two  myriads,' 
but  this  does  not  mean,  as  in  R.  V.,  exactly  20,000,  the  dual  being 
used  distributively  =  ' reckoned  by  myriads.'  The  next  clause, 
even  thousands  upon  thousands,  repeats  the  idea  in  another 
form.  A.  V.  again  follows  the  Targum  in  its  mention  of  '  angels,' 
but  with  a  reminiscence  of  the  '  myriads  of  holy  ones  '  in  Deut. 
xxiii.  2  ;  but  there  is  no  foundation  for  this  in  the  Hebrew. 

The  last  clause  of  the  vqrse  is  somewhat  difficult.  The  device 
of  A.  V.  and  R.  V.,  adding  the  words  'as  in '  is  permissible,  but 
it  mars  the  simplicity  of  the  original  which  runs,  The  Iiord  is 
among  them,  Sinai  is  in  tho  sanctuary  I  (See  marg.).  Perowne 
and  others  slightly  alter  the  text  and  read  '  is  come  from  Sinai  into 
the  sanctuary,'  but  the  emendation  is  tame  and  unnecessary. 
The  meaning  is  that  all  the  sacredness  of  Sinai,  and  more,  is  to 
be  found  in  this  holy  place,  where  God  has  taken  up,  not  a  tem- 
porary halting-place  as  at  Sinai,  but  a  permanent  abode,  to  dwell 
in  it  for  ever. 

18.  The  climax  of  the  Conqueror's  glory.  He  takes  His  place 
upon  the  throne  and  receives  homage  on  all  hands.  In  the  second 
clause  render,  '  Thou  hast  led  captive  thy  captives  ' :  the  abstract 
word  *  captivity  '  does  not  give  the  meaning.     These  prisoners 


THE   PSALMS  68.  19,  20  333 

Thou  hast  received  gifts  among  men, 
Yea,  among  the  rebellious  also,  that  the  Lord  God  might 
dwell  wty^  thetn. 

Blessed  be  the  Lord,  who  daily  beareth  our  burden,  19 

Even  the  God  who  is  our  salvation.  [Selah 

God  is  unto  us  a  God  of  deliverances ;  20 

And  unto  jehovah  the  Lord  belong  the  issues  from  death. 

are  the  heathen  enemies  of  Israel  and  of  God  ;  the  ascending  on 
high  is  metaphorical,  and  may  either  represent  God,  as  it  were, 
returning  to  heaven,  or  the  winding  of  the  triumphal  procession 
up  the  hill  of  Zion. 

The  Victor  receives  gifts  [from]  amongf  men,  not  *  for  men,' 
A.  V.  All  are  subject  to  His  sway  and  pay  tribute,  even  the 
rebellions  heathen  show  this  mark  of  submission,  '  that  Jah 
Elohim  might  dwell  there,'  i.  e.  undisturbed,  His  power  unques- 
tioned, in  Zion. 

St.  Paul  in  Eph.  iv.  8  uses  this  passage,  not  quoting  it  exactly, 
but  adapting  it  for  his  purpose — as  some  think,  following  a  current 
Rabbinical  paraphrase  in  the  clause  '  gave  gifts  unto  men.'  In 
N.  T.  Christ  is  the  conqueror  who,  after  His  ascension,  did  not  so 
much  exact  homage  as  scatter  largesse  among  His  subjects.  His 
gifts  being  the  equipment  of  His  Church  with  faithful  officers  and 
leaders.  The  apostle  preserves  and  heightens  the  significance 
and  spirit  of  the  Psalmist's  utterance  while  departing  from  its 
literal  phraseology. 

19.  The  review  of  the  past  is  over.  God  is  enthroned  in  Zion, 
and  the  Psalmist  breaks  forth  in  praise  to  Him  for  what  He  is 
and  will  be  to  His  people. 

The  rendering  of  A.  V.  '  loadeth  with  benefits  *  does  not  give 
the  meaning,  which  is,  as  R.  V.  text  gives  it,  '  who  daily  beareth 
for  us '  (our  burden),  or  as  some  ancient  versions  and  modern 
expositors  render  it,  *  who  daily  beareth  us  !  *  Compare,  for  the 
word,  Isa.  xlvi.  3,  4,  also  for  the  thought,  Ps.  xxviii.  9  '  bear  them 
up  for  ever,'  and  Isa.  Ixiii,  9.  To  load  with  benefits  is  gracious  ; 
to  bear  another's  burden  implies  closer  sympathy  ;  but  to  bear 
and  carry  the  heavy-laden  and  suffering  themselves  is  Divine ! 

20,  21.  Two  names  of  God  are  joined  in  the  second  line.  The 
word  God  is  printed  in  A.  V.  in  capitals,  to  show  that  the  sacred 
name  'Jehovah  '  should  be  read.  Israel  at  the  time  of  the  Psalm- 
ist's writing  needed  a  deliverer  who  could  command  the  issues 
or  *  means  of  escape  from  death.'  They  were  in  danger  from 
cruel  foes  whom  God  would  punish  in  their  wickedness,  however 


334  THE   PSALMS  G8.  21-26 

21  But  God  shall  smite  through  the  head  of  his  enemies, 
The  hairy  scalp  of  such  an  one  as  goeth  on  still  in  his 

guiltiness. 

22  The  Lord  said,  I  will  bring  again  from  Bashan, 

I  will  bring  them  again  from  the  depths  of  the  sea : 

23  That  thou  mayest  dip  thy  foot  in  blood, 

That  the  tongue  of  thy  dogs  may  have  its  portion  from 
thine  enemies. 

24  They  have  seen  thy  goings,  O  God, 

Even  the  goings  of  my  God,  my  King,  into  the  sanctuary. 

25  The  singers  went  before,  the  minstrels  followed  after. 
In  the  midst  of  the  damsels  playing  with  timbrels. 

26  Bless  ye  God  in  the  congregations, 

proud  their  strength.  This  is  the  meaning  of  what  is  to  us 
a  curious  phrase,  the  hairy  scalp  of  sucli  an  one,  &c.  An 
allusion  to  the  long  flowing  hair  in  which  warriors  delighted  as 
a  mark  of  strength  is  found  in  Deut.  xxxii.  42,  '  the  hairy  head  of 
the  enemy,'  R.  V.  marg. 

22,  23.  The  object  of  the  verb  bring'  agfain  is  not,  as  the  older 
interpreters  supposed,  God's  own  people,  but  their  enemies.  They 
might  hide  among  the  basaltic  rocks  and  fastnesses  of  Bashan,  they 
might  plunge  into  the  very  depths  of  the  sea,  but  they  should  not 
escape  condign  punishment.  The  form  in  which  this  punishment 
is  to  be  inflicted,  revolting  as  it  is  to  our  ideas,  was  sadly  familiar 
in  early  times,  and  the  phraseology  '  the  dogs  shall  lick  the  blood  of 
their  slain  '  was  proverbial  for  righteous  vengeance.   See  Ps.  Iviii.  10. 

24.  A  festal  procession  to  the  temple  is  described  in  24-27. 
But  it  is  not  to  be  confused  with  the  going  up  of  the  King  in  verse 
17.  He  is  enthroned,  and  has  celebrated  his  victory  over  the 
enemy,  and  now  comes  the  rejoicing  of  the  people,  who  solemnly 
present  their  thanksgivings  in  the  sanctuary.  'Israel's  festival  of 
victory  is  regarded  as  a  triumphal  procession  of  God  Himself,' 
Delitzsch.  *  They  have  seen  '  is  to  be  understood  impersonally  ; 
the  sacred  splendour  has  been  visible  to  all  eyes. 

25.  In  a  Psalm  so  full  of  allusions  to  other  Scriptures  we  may 
understand  this  verse  as  intentionally  presenting  a  parallt-l  to  Exod. 
XV.  20,  in  which  Miriam  and  the  women  celebrated  the  deliverance 
at  the  Red  Sea  with  timbrels  and  dances. 

26.  Bless  ye  God,  &c.,  the  words  of  the  hymn  sung,  'Ye  that 
are  of  the  fountain  of  Israel ' :  i.e.  who  derive  your  birth  from 


THE   PSALMS  OS,  27-29  335 

Even  the  Lord,  ye  that  o7-e  of  the  fountain  of  Israel. 
There  is  little  Benjamin  their  ruler,  2; 

The  princes  of  Judah  a7id  their  council. 
The  princes  of  Zebulun,  the  princes  of  Naphtali. 

Thy  God  hath  commanded  thy  strength  :  28 

Strengthen,  O  God,  that  which  thou  hast  wrought  for  us. 
Because  of  thy  temple  at  Jerusalem  29 

Kings  shall  bring  presents  unto  thee. 

Ihc  patriarch  ;  compare  Isa.  xlviii.  i,  *  which  are  come  forth  out  of 
the  waters  of  Judah.'  Some  understand  Zion,  or  the  temple,  to 
be  the  '  fountain  '  in  question.  The  P.  B.  V.  renders  *  from  the 
ground  of  the  heart,'  a  suggestive  phrase  which  has  influenced 
rehgious  hterature,  but  which  is  quite  foreign  to  the  meaning.  It 
is  based  on  the  meaning  of  fountain  as  origin  or  ultimate  source, 
the  words  '■  of  the  heart '  being  suppHed. 

27.  Four  tribes  take  part  in  the  procession  ;  Benjamin  and 
Judah  represent  the  south,  and  Zebulun  and  Naphtali — so  honour- 
ably prominent  in  the  song  of  Deborah  which  this  Psalmist  is 
continually  recalUng — stand  for  the  northern  tribes.  They  are 
not  chosen  as  the  strongest  and  most  influential,  but  as  being 
specially  exposed  to  invasion  and  brave  in  repelling  it.  Compare 
Isa.  ix.  I,  where  the  region  named  after  these  tribes  is  first  'brought 
into  contempt '  then  '  made  glorious.' 

little  Benjamin,  the  youngest  son  and  the  smallest  tribe, 
their  ruler  furnishing  the  first  king,  Saul.  Their  council  or 
'company':  lit.  'crowd,'  since  Judah  was  the  largest  or  most 
numerous  tribe. 

28.  Better,  with  all  the  ancient  versions,  '  O  God  command  Th}' 
strength  ;  Be  strong,  O  God,  Thou  that  hast  wrought  for  us ' 
(R.  V.  marg.).  This  avoids  the  awkward  interpolation  of  an 
address  to  Israel.  The  Psalmist  recognizes  the  Divine  might  and 
its  manifestation  in  the  past,  praying  that  again  it  may  be  put 
forth  for  present  needs. 

29.  The  first  clause  is  difficult.  The  opening  preposition 
properly  means  *  from,'  not  because  of,  and  one  explanation  is 
to  attach  the  clause  'from  Thy  temple'  to  the  preceding  verse 
(R.  V.  marg.).  But  this  disturbs  the  balance  of  clauses  and  im- 
plies an  unusual  meaning  for  the  preposition  at,  properly  'over' ; 
it  would  have  to  be  translated  *  up  to  Jerusalem '  (Perowne). 
Another  explanation  (Cheyne)  draws  a  distinction  between  the 
holy  place,  which  the  kings  might  enter  and  from  which  thej' 


336  THE   PSALMS  68.  30-33 

30  Rebuke  the  wild  beast  of  the  reeds, 

The  multitude  of  the  bulls,  with  the  calves  of  the  peoples, 

Trampling  under  foot  the  pieces  of  silver ; 

He  hath  scattered  the  peoples  that  delight  in  war.  i  : 

31  Princes  shall  come  out  of  Egypt ; 

Ethiopia  shall  haste  to  stretch  out  her  hands  unto  God. 
33  Sing  unto  God,  ye  kingdoms  of  the  earth  ; 

O  sing  praises  unto  the  Lord ;  [Selah 

33  To  him  that  rideth  upon  the  heavens  of  heavens,  which 
are  of  old ; 

Lo,  he  uttereth  his  voice,  and  that  a  mighty  voice. 

offer  presents.     No  translation  is  free  from  a  slight  awkwardness, 
but  the  general  meaning  is  clear. 

30.  wild  beast  of  tlie  reeds :  the  hippopotamus,  symbolically 
representing  Egypt,  the  behemoth  of  Job  xl.  15,  21.  A.  V.  'the 
company  of  spearmen '  follows  certain  Jewish  interpreters,  but 
the  more  correct  translation  is  given  in  the  image. 

biUls  .  .  .  calves:  the  leaders  of  the  nations  with  their 
followers.  Trampling^  under  foot  the  pieces  of  silver  means 
that  God  in  rebuking  these  haughty  foes  should  disdain  to  accept 
the  offerings  they  bring  to  avert  His  wrath.  The  translation  of 
A.  V.  and  R.  V.  marg.  '  Every  one  submitting  himself,'  &c.,  makes 
better  sense,  but  is  grammatically  doubtful.  Baethgen,  Cheyne, 
and  others  abandon  the  text  as  corrupt,  and  it  is  useless  here  to 
discuss  emendations,  since  there  is  none  obvious  or  generally 
accepted. 

In  the  last  line  A,  V.,  with  some  ancient  versions,  reads  'scatter 
Thou ' ;  so  R.  V.  marg.,  atid  this  rendering  is  to  be  preferred.  R.  V. 
text  He  hath  scattered  must  be  understood  as  a  confident  anticipa- 
tion of  what  God  will  do. 

31.  Princes:  a  peculiar  word  found  here  only.  A  kindred 
word  in  Ixxvaii.  31  means  '  fat  ones ' ;  we  should  say  '  great  ones,' 
magnates,  dignitaries. 

Ethiopia,  Heb.  <Cush,'  P.  B,  V.  'the  Morians'  land,'  often 
stands  in  O.  T.  for  distant  and  little-known  peoples.  '  When  Cush 
submits,  the  world  is  won.' 

32.  The  thoughts  of  the  Psalm  are  now  gathered  up  in  a 
closing  stanza.  All  the  nations  of  the  earth  are  summoned  to 
join  in  praising  the  God  whose  triumph  has  been  described  at 
length. 

33.  In  verse  4  God  rides  through  the  deserts,  now  He  is  supreme 


THE  PSALMS  68.  34— 09.  i  337 

Ascribe  ye  strength  unto  God  :  S4 

His  excellency  is  over  Israel, 

And  his  strength  is  in  the  skies. 

O  God,  thou  art  terrible  out  of  thy  holy  places  :  35 

The  God  of  Israel,  he  giveth  strength  and  power  unto 

his  people. 
Llcssed  be  God. 

For  the  Chief  Musician  ;  set  to  Shoshannim.     A  Psalm  of  David.  68 

Save  me,  O  God ;  i 

in  the  eternal  heavens.     His  mighty  voice  has  spoken,  all  peoples 
cannot  choose  but  hear. 

34.  Let  them  then  acknowledge  two  things — God's  special 
goodness  to  Israel,  and  his  dominion  in  heaven  and  earth. 

35.  A  final  ascription  of  praise  on  the  part  of  the  Psalmist.  Such 
a  Psalm  should  end  with  a  doxology.     Render  : — 

^  Terrible  art  Thou,  O  God,  from  Thy  sanctuary,  Thou  God  of 

Israel : 
He  it  is  who  giveth  strength  and  abundance  of  might  to  His 

people. 
Blessed  be  God  ! ' 

Psalm  LXIX.     Prayer  of  the  Suffering  Servant  of  God. 

After  a  paean,  a  plaintive  cry.  The  writer  of  this  Psalm  is  in  un- 
usually deep  affliction,  and  it  is  because  of  his  fidelity  to  truth  and 
to  God  that  he  suffers.  Like  Ps.  xxii,  this  is  a  passion -Psalm  ; 
as  in  it,  trouble  chancres  into  triumph  and  prayer  to  praise.  The 
two  Psalms  breathe  in  several  respects  the  spirit  of  the  N.  T. ,  and 
are  often  quoted  both  in  Gospels  and  Epistles.  But  the  differences 
between  the  Old  Covenant  and  the  New  are  no  less  manifest,  and 
these  must  not  be  ignored  or  slighted  in  exposition. 

It  is  impossible  to  determine  date  and  authorship,  but  it  is 
easier  than  usual  to  form  probable  conjectures,  and  interpreters 
are  for  once  fairly  well  agreed  in  their  judgement.  The  period 
which  best  represents  the  conditions  is  that  of  Jeremiah,  and  some 
leading  critics  would  ascribe  the  Psalm  to  the  prophet  himself. 
Davidic  authorship  is  out  of  the  question  :  even  Delitzsch  says  that 
in  Pss.  xl  and  Ixix  Jeremiah  '  poured  forth  his  emotions  in  the 
form  of  Davidic  Psalms,  and  perhaps  also  gave  them  Davidic  titles.* 
The  language  of  the  Psalm  presents  several  detailed  coincidences 
With  ihat  of  Jeremiah,  which  are  pointed  out  in  the  notes.     Tic 


338  THE   PSALMS  69.  2 

For  tlie  waters  are  come  in  unto  my  soul. 
2  I  sink  in  deep  mire,  where  there  is  no  standing  : 
I  am  come  into  deep  waters,  where  the  floods  overflow  me. 

general  conditions  of  Psalmist  and  prophet  are  very  similar, 
notably  that  each  is  suffering  as  martyr  or  confessor,  being  mis- 
understood and  misrepresented,  not  only  by  fellow  countrymen, 
but  by  his  nearest  friends.  Compare  especially  Jer.  xi,  xv,  xvii, 
XX.  Deep  and  tender  feeling  characterizes  both  writers,  both 
exhibit  wounded  but  invincible  faith,  both  anticipate  spiritual 
benefit  to  result  to  the  nation  and  the  individual  from  the  period 
of  sharp  trial  through  which  they  are  passing.  We  may  say 
with  Kirkpatrick,  'If  Jeremiah  was  not  the  author,  it  must  have 
been  some  prophet  of  a  kindred  temper  of  mind  under  very 
similar  circumstances.'  The  conditions  are  quite  fairly  met  if  we 
suppose  the  writer  to  have  been  a  later  Psalmist,  during  or  after 
the  Exile,  who  was  imbued  with  the  spirit  and  familiar  with  the 
writings  of  his  great  predecessor.  Jeremiah  was  one  of  the  finest 
and  most  sorely  tried  spirits  among  all  the  heroes  of  the  O.  T. 
Caricatured  as  he  was  in  his  lifetime,  and  by  later  tradition  known 
as  '  the  weeping  prophet,*  a  mere  utterer  of  'jeremiads,'  this  saint 
and  martyr  was  a  man  as  strong  as  he  was  sensitive,  as  brave  as 
he  was  tender.  Perhaps  it  may  truly  be  said  that  Jeremiah,  in 
spite  of  his  faults,  v/as  one  of  the  most  Christ-like  of  all  the  servants 
of  God  under  the  Old  Covenant.  This  Psalm  should  be  read 
throughout  with  Jeremiah  in  mind  ;  whether  he  wrote  it  or  not, 
his  history  gives  the  key  to  its  meaning. 

The  Psalm  may  be  divided  into  five  parts.  In  the  first  stanza, 
verses  1-6,  the  Psalmist  pleads  his  sad  case ;  in  7-12  he  describes  its 
cause  and  the  cruel  conduct  of  those  who  ought  to  have  helped 
him  ;  in  13-18  he  repeats  his  earlier  plea  in  stronger  language. 
Turning  once  again  to  his  persecutors,  his  indignation  burns  more 
fiercely  against  them,  and' he  breathes  dire  and  bitter  imprecations 
upon  them  19-28 ;  whilst  in  the  closing  stanza  he  anticipates  the 
deliverance  for  the  afflicted  which  God  will  accomplish  and  the 
glory  to  His  holy  name  which  will  accrue  when  His  salvation  fully 
appears,  29-36. 

For  the  title  set  to  Shoshannim,  i.  e.  'the  tune  of  the  Lilies,' 
see  Introd.  p.  16,  and  compare  Ps,  xlv. 

1.  For  water-floods  as  a  symbol  of  danger,  see  Pss.  xviii.  16, 
xxxii.  6  ;  come  in  unto  my  soul  means  threaten  my  very  life. 

2.  deep  mire  :  lif.  '  mud  of  the  gulf  or  abyss.  In  time  of  flood 
there  are  two  dangers,  one  of  sinking  into  morass  or  quicksand, 
the  other  of  being  swept  away  by  the  strong  current  of  water. 
The  Psalmist  mentions  both  of  these  perils.  It  would  be  mislead- 
ing to  take  the  phrase  literally  and  to  refer  it  to  that  dungeon  or  pit 


THE   PSALMS  60.  3-8  339 

I  am  weary  with  my  crying  ;  my  throat  is  dried  :  3 

Mine  eyes  fail  while  I  wait  for  my  God. 

They  that  hate  me  without  a  cause  are  more  than  the  4 
hairs  of  mine  head  : 

They  that  would  cut  me  off,  being  mine  enemies  wrong- 
fully, are  mighty : 

Then  I  restored  that  which  I  took  not  away. 

0  God,  thou  knowest  my  foolishness ;  5 
And  my  sins  are  not  hid  from  thee. 

Let  not  them  that  wait  on  thee  be  ashamed  through  me,  6 

O  Lord  God  of  hosts  : 
Let  not  those  that  seek  thee  be  brought  to  dishonour 

through  me,  O  God  of  Israel. 
Because  for  thy  sake  I  have  borne  reproach ;  7 

Shame  hath  covered  my  face. 

1  am  become  a  stranger  unto  my  brethren,  S 
And  an  alien  unto  my  mother's  children. 

of  Malchijah,  in  which  Jeremiah  was  imprisoned  and  sank  into 
the  mire,  Jer.  xxxviii.  6.  The  figure  of  the  text  pictures  a  wider 
destruction  than  the  foul  mud  at  the  bottom  of  a  pit. 

3.  The  exhaustion,  the  parching  of  the  throat,  the  failure  of 
sight  through  grief  and  weeping,  are  mentioned  in  other  Psalms, 
see  vi.  6,  7,  xxii.  15,  xxxviii.  10,  cxix.  82,  &c. 

4.  His  foes  are  many  and  strong.  They  treated  the  Psalmist  as 
the  wolf  accused  the  lamb  in  the  fable  ;  the  last  line  should  be 
rendered,  '  What  I  never  took  away,  that  I  had  to  restore.'  The 
phrase  is  to  be  understood  rather  proverbially  than  literally  of 
one  who  was  slandered  as  well  as  oppressed,  and  robbed  under 
the  pretext  of  making  him  restore  ill-gotten  gains. 

5.  My  foolishness  .  .  .  my  sins:  such  confession  isnotalwa^'s 
made  by  the  Psalmists  in  their  sufferings  ;  sometimes  they  con- 
fidently plead  their  own  integrity.  Jeremiah,  however,  constantly 
casts  himself  upon  the  omniscience  of  God,  and  prays  that  the 
All-knowing  and  All-pitying  will  help  him,  Jer,  xv.  15  ;  xvii.  16,  &c. 

6.  V.  However  unworthy  the  Psalmist  may  be,  his  cause  is 
bound  up  with  that  of  God's  people  and  of  God  Himself.  It  is 
for  his  Master's  sake  that  he  has  borne  reproach,  and  he  pleads 
that  God  for  His  own  sake  will  deliver  him. 

8.  By  the  innermost  circle  of  friends  and  family  he  has  been 

Z   2 


340  THE   PSALMS  69.  9-13 

9  For  the  zeal  of  thine  house  hath  eaten  me  up ; 
And  the  reproaches  of  them  that  reproach  thee  are  fallen 
upon  me. 

10  When  I  wept,  and  chastened  my  soul  with  fasting, 
That  was  to  my  reproach. 

11  When  I  made  sackcloth  my  clothing, 
I  became  a  proverb  unto  them. 

1 2  They  that  sit  in  the  gate  talk  of  me ; 
And  /  am  the  song  of  the  drunkards. 

13  But  as  for  me,  my  prayer  is  unto  thee,  O  Lord,  in  an 

acceptable  time : 
O  God,  in  the  multitude  of  thy  mercy, 

betrayed  and  abandoned.  *  My  own  mother's  children '  are  of 
closer  kin  than  my  toretliren,  who  may  be  only  the  sons  of  the 
same  father,  or  more  distantly  related. 

9.  Jeremiah  is  a  striking  example  of  the  complete  identification 
of  the  servant  of  God  with  the  cause  of  God,  and  of  the  consuming 
desire  which  burns  away  the  very  life  of  the  true  devotee — whom 
men  call  a  fanatic.  See  Jer.  xx.  9.  Thine  house  may  refer 
literally  to  the  temple  and  its  threatened  profanation,  or  to  the 
church-nation  generally,  as  in  Jer.  xi.  15,  xii.  7. 

But  for  the  perfect  illustration  of  these  words  we  must  turn  to 
N.  T.  The  first  half  of  this  verse  is  quoted  in  John  ii.  17,  the 
second  half  in  Rom.  xv.  3  :  Christ's  disciples  during  His  lifetime, 
and  Paul  after  His  death,  alike  found  in  this  verse  an  apt  description 
of  the  spirit  in  which  the  Son  of  Man  and  Son  of  God  did  and 
suffered  the  Father's  will. 

10-12.  An  illustration  of  the  way  in  which  these  bitter  re- 
proaches for  righteousness'  sake  tortured  the  tender  spirit  of  the 
sufferer.  Overwhelmed  with  shame  and  sorrow  for  the  nation's 
sins,  he  publicly  fasted  and  mourned.  This  action  of  his  and  its 
cause  were  alike  the  subject  of  mockery,  and  further  discredit 
was  brought  upon  religion,  as  the  drunkards  blasphemed  the  name 
of  God  in  making  sport  of  His  servant. 

In  the  gate,  the  place  of  public  concourse  ;  they  who  sit  there 
are  the  idle  loafers,  *  men  of  the  market  place,'  described  in  Acts 
xvii.  5  as  'vile  fellows  of  the  rabble.'  For  the  habitual  drunkards 
of  the  time  see  Isa.  v.  11,  12. 

13.  This  Abdiel,  faithful  among  the  faithless,  has,  however, 
a  sure  refuge.  Compare  Ps.  civ.  9,  '  But  I  give  myself  unto 
prayer,'  //V.  *  I  am  prayer.*     The  clauss  In  an  acceptable  time,  or 


THE   PSALMS  69.  14-19  341 

Answer  me  in  the  truth  of  thy  salvation. 

Deliver  me  out  of  the  mire,  and  let  me  not  sink  :  T4 

Let  me  be  delivered  from  them  that  hate  me,  and  out  of 

the  deep  waters. 
Let  not  the  waterflood  overwhelm  me,  15 

Neither  let  the  deep  swallow  me  up ; 
And  let  not  the  pit  shut  her  mouth  upon  me. 
Answer  me,  O  Lord  ;  for  thy  loving-kindness  is  good  :     16 
According  to  the  multitude  of  thy  tender  mercies  turn 

thou  unto  me. 
And  hide  not*  thy  face  from  thy  servant ;  17 

For  I  am  in  distress ;  answer  me  speedily. 
Draw  nigh  unto  my  soul,  and  redeem  it :  iS 

Ransom  me  because  of  mine  enemies. 
Thou  knowest  my  reproach,  and  my  shame,  and  my  19 

dishonour : 
Mine  adversaries  are  all  before  thee. 


'  in  a  time  of  favour,'  corresponds  with  in  the  multitude  of  thy 
mercy,  and  a  plea  lurks  in  the  heart  of  each.  The  last  clause,  *  with 
the  truth  of  thy  salvation,'  might  be  paraphrased  '  by  the  exercise 
of  that  saving  power  which  Thou  wilt  faithfully  put  forth  in  Thine 
own  time.' 

14,  15.  Prayer  to  be  delivered  from  the  evils  mentioned  in 
verse  2,  with  the  addition  let  not  the  pit  shut  her  mouth  upon 
me.  Some  commentators  explain  this  of  the  mouth  of  a  well ;  if 
the  orifice  be  closed,  a  man  at  the  bottom  would  be  literally  buried 
alive.  It  is  better,  however,  to  understand  the  word  generally 
as  =  the  grave,  or  'pit  of  destruction,'  Ps.  Iv.  23. 

16-18.  Seven  petitions  based  substantially  on  three  pleas,  (i) 
Thou  art  po  good,  so  full  of  lovingkindness  :  (2)  I  thy  servant  am 
in  such  sore  trouble.  Thou  canst  not  desert  me  :  (3)  My  enemies 
will  triumph  if  my  prayer  is  unanswered,  and  the  sacred  Name 
will  be  correspondingly  dishonoured.  Thus  does  the  suppliant 
know  how  to  gather  arguments  from  the  nature  of  God,  from  his 
own  straits,  and  from  the  conditions  of  life  around  him. 

19.  He  returns  to  the  theme  of  his  woes  with  deepened  feel- 
ing, which  increases  as  this  stanza  proceeds.  But  it  is  to  plead 
them  as  already  lying  in  the  very  spirit  of  God — Thou  knowest  I 


342  THE   PSALMS   69.  20-24 

20  Reproach  hath   broken   my  heart ;   and   I   am   full  of 

heaviness  : 
And  I  looked  for  some  to  take  pity,  but  there  was  none ; 
And  for  comforters,  but  I  found  none. 

21  They  gave  me  also  gall  for  my  meat ; 

And  in  my  thirst  they  gave  me  vinegar  to  drink. 

22  Let  their  table  before  them  become  a  snare ; 
And  when  they  are  in  peace,  let  it  become  a  trap. 

23  Let  their  eyes  be  darkened,  that  they  see  not ; 
And  make  their  loins  continually  to  shake. 

24  Pour  out  thine  indignation  upon  them, 

20.  Almost  the  words  of  Jeremiah.  Compare  xxiii.  9,  where 
the  prophet  complains  '  my  heart  is  broken,'  and  enlarges  on  the 
prevalent  wickedness  which  has  made  his  brain  giddy,  as  well  as 
his  heart  sore. 

21.  A  proverbial  expression  to  describe  the  adding  of  insult  to 
injury.  Gall — perhaps  the  poppy — a  bitter  and  poisonous  plant 
for  his  food,  vinegar — sour  and  unwholesome  wine — to  drink. 
That  is,  the  sufferings  of  the  hungry  and  thirsty  are  treated  with 
mockery,  the  original  cruelty  is  multiplied  tenfold  by  the  scorn 
which  pours  poison  into  the  wound. 

This  verse  is  alluded  to  in  the  narratives  of  the  sufferings  of 
Christ  upon  the  cross,  see  Matt,  xxvii.  34  and  John  xix.  28.  The 
*  fulfilment '  of  Scripture  referred  to  must  not  be  understood  as 
the  accomplishment  of  a  direct  prophecy,  nor  even  as  the  corre- 
spondence of  a  perfect  type,  but  rather  as  the  complete  realization 
of  the  spirit,  and  to  some  extent  the  details,  of  this  Psalm  in  the 
case  of  a  Perfect  and  Spotless  Sufferer. 

22.  Those  who  v/ould  too  closely  press  the  t3''pical  relation 
between  the  Psalmist  and  our  Lord  must  be  arrested  by  this 
verse.  The  imprecations  which  extend  to  the  end  of  verse  28  are 
amongst  the  darkest  and  fiercest  in  the  Psalter.  The  gulf  which 
separates  these  verses  froni  *  Father  forgive  them,  for  they  know 
not  what  they  do  '  marks  the  impassable  limits  of  typology. 

The  form  of  imprecation  in  this  verse  is  suggested  by  the 
figures  of  21.  May  they  be  seized  in  the  midst  of  their  unhallowed 
enjoyments,  and  their  very  security''  prove  their  ruin?  St.  Paul 
quotes  this  and  the  next  verse  in  Rom.  xi.  9,  mainly  following 
the  LXX. 

23.  The  darkening  of  the  eyes  and  trembling  of  the  limbs  are 
'^:igns  of  weakness,  perhaps  paral3'sis. 

24.  25.  The  Divine  wrath  is  to  overtake  their  families  as  well 


THE    PSALMS  69.  25-29  343 

And  let  the  fierceness  of  thine  anger  overtake  them. 

Let  their  habitation  be  desolate ;  25 

Let  none  dwell  in  their  tents. 

For  they  persecute  him  whom  thou  hast  smitten  ;  26 

And  they  tell  of  the  sorrow  of  those  whom  thou  hast 

wounded. 
Add  iniquity  unto  their  iniquity  :  27 

And  let  them  not  come  into  thy  righteousness. 
Let  them  be  blotted  out  of  the  book  of  life,  28 

And  not  be  written  with  the  righteous. 
But  I  am  poor  and  sorrowful :  29 

Let  thy  salvation,  O  God,  set  me  up  on  high. 


as  themselves.  Modern  mercy  spares  as  far  as  possible  the  help- 
less dependents  of  a  criminal  ;  the  Oriental  thinks  of  punishment 
as  incomplete  if  it  does  not  involve  the  household.  St.  Peter 
quotes  this  verse  in  reference  to  Judas,  Acts  i.  20,  following  the 
LXX,  but  adapting  the  passage  for  his  own  purpose. 

26.  The  ground  of  all  these  terrible  maledictions  is  that  these 
evil  men  were  not  simply  cruel  to  a  brother-man,  but  took  sides 
against  God,  would  not  recognize  His  chastening  hand,  but  turned 
as  it  were  good  into  evil  by  maltreating  the  suffering  servant  of 
God.  Compare  Isa.  liii.  4.  LXX  reads  'the^'  add  to  the  sorrow 
of  him  whom  Thou  hast  smitten,'  this  was  the  worst  part  of  the 
offence. 

27,  28.  The  climax  of  imprecation.  The  book  of  life,  better 
'  the  book  of  the  living '  (marg.),  must  not  be  understood  in  the 
N.  T.  sense  with  reference  to  a  future  state,  Rev.  xx.  12.  The 
most  instructive  parallels  are  Isa.  iv.  3,  *  written  among  the  living 
in  Jerusalem.'  and  Dan.  xii.  i.  Moses  also  refers  to  'the  book 
which  thou  hast  written.'  The  idea  is  that  of  a  register  of  the 
true  citizens  in  the  city  of  God,  and  the  names  of  these  men  are 
not  to  be  found  enrolled  in  it.  Death  and  deprivation  of  all  the 
privileges  of  Israelites  are  implied  in  this  curse,  and  the  force  of 
imprecation  at  the  time  could  go  no  further.  The  expedients 
which  have  been  devised  for  softening  the  meaning  of  these  awful 
curses  must,  we  fear,  be  pronounced  vain.  The  dark  words 
stand  ;  their  relation  to  the  ethics  and  theology  of  the  O.  T.  is 
discussed  in  the  Introduction  to  vol.  ii  of  this  work. 

29.  That  the  Psalmist  could  breathe  such  dire  pra3'ers  with  a  good 
conscience  is  clear  from   this   and  tlie  following  verses.     With 


344  THE  PSALMS  GO.  30-36 

30  I  will  praise  the  name  of  God  with  a  song, 
And  will  magnify  him  with  thanksgiving. 

31  And  it  shall  please  the  Lord  better  than  an  ox, 
Or  a  bullock  that  hath  horns  and  hoofs. 

32  The  meek  have  seen  it,  and  are  glad  : 

Ye  that  seek  after  God,  let  your  heart  live. 

33  For  the  Lord  heareth  the  needy. 
And  despiseth  not  his  prisoners. 

34  Let  heaven  and  earth  praise  him, 

The  seas,  and  every  thing  that  moveth  therein. 

35  For  God  will  save  Zion,  and  build  the  cities  of  Judah  ; 
And  they  shall  abide  there,  and  have  it  in  possession. 

36  The  seed  also  of  his  servants  shall  inherit  it ; 
And  they  that  love  his  name  shall  dwell  therein. 


a  certain  complacency  he  contemplates  his  own  position,  though 
he  is  'afflicted  and  in  pain.'  He  is  as  confident  that  God  will 
deliver  him  as  he  is  that  the  evil-doers  shall  be  terribly  punished. 

30,  31.  In  the  same  breath  with  his  imprecations  upon  his 
enemies  he  offers  thanksgiving  to  God,  assured  that  such  spiritual 
sacrifice  will  be  well-pleasing  to  Him.  The  reference  to  horns 
and  hoofs  of  the  bullock  shows  that  the  animal  is  fit  for  sacrifice 
— possessing  horns  and  cleaving  the  hoof — of  fullage,  andbelonging 
to  the  class  accounted  '  clean,'  Lev.  xi. 

32.,  33.  Render  :— 

*  When  the  meek  see  this,  they  are  glad  ; 
Ye  that  seek  after  God,  let  your  heart  revive.' 

The  Psalmist  holds  that  there  are  two  sides  in  the  great  world- 
conflict — on  the  one  hand  are  ranged  the  rich  and  powerful  and 
influential  wicked,  on  the  other  are  the  poor  and  afll'cted  righteous 
and — Jehovah.  Every  deliverance  effected  by  God  for  one  of 
the  latter  class  puts  heart  into  all  the  rest. 

34-36.  The  plaintive  strain  is  now  entirely  lost  in  rejoicing. 
The  whole  universe  is  to  join  in  a  chorus  of  praise,  because  in  the 
little  corner  of  the  world  known  as  Jerusalem  the  God  of  Israel 
restores  and  comforts  His  faithful  people.  The  phrase  *  will  re- 
build the  cities  of  Judah  '  is  one  mark  of  date  making  the  period 
of  Jeremiah  the  most  probable  for  this  Psalm.  Cf.  Jcr.  xxxiii.  10, 
xxxiv.  7.  There  is  no  ground  for  supposing  these  verses  to  be 
a  liturgical  addition. 


THE   PSALMS  70.  1-5  345 

For  the  Chief  Musician.     A  Psalm  of  David  ;  to  bring  to  70 

remembrance. 

Make  hasfe,  O  God,  to  deliver  me ;  i 

Make  haste  to  help  me,  O  Lord. 

Let  them  be  ashamed  and  confounded  a 

That  seek  after  my  soul : 

Let  them  be  turned  backward  and  brought  to  dishonour 

That  delight  in  my  hurt. 

Let  them  be  turned  back  by  reason  of  their  shame  3 

That  say,  Aha,  Aha. 

Let  all  those  that  seek  thee  rejoice  and  be  glad  in  thee ;  4 

And  let  such  as  love  thy  salvat^pn  say  continually, 

Let  God  be  magnified. 

But  I  am  poor  and  needy ;  5 

Psalm  LXX.     A  Cry  for  Help. 

This  fragment,  printed  as  a  separate  Psalm  in  Book  II,  occurs 
in  Book  I  as  Ps.  xl.  13-17.  The  slight  variations  which  distinguish 
this  recension  are  noted  below  ;  for  a  commentary  on  the  whole 
see  Ps.  xl,  which,  so  far  as  can  be  judged,  preserves  the  earlier 
text. 

For  the  title  to  bringf  to  remembrance,  marg.  *  to  make  memo- 
rial,' see  Ps.  xxxviii  and  Introduction,  p.  17.  The  memorial 
Azkara  is  a  technical  name  either  for  the  offering  of  incense 
generally,  Isa.  Ixvi.  3,  or  for  a  part  of  the  meal-offering.  Lev.  ii.  2, 
or  for  the  offering  of  the  incense  which  had  been  placed  upon  the 
shewbread.  Lev.  xxiv.  7.  This  portion  of  a  Psalm  was  perhaps 
detached  for  liturgical  use,  and  the  fact  is  instructive  with  regard 
to  the  freedom  of  combination  and  separation  employed  by  the 
editors  of  the  Psalter. 

1.  Make  haste,  O  God,  &c.  We  read  in  xl.  13,  *  Be  pleased  to 
deliver  me  '  :  '  make  haste,'  which  is  not  in  the  Hebrew,  is  supplied 
from  the  second  clause.  The  name  Jehovah  is  changed  to  Llohim 
in  the  first  line,  but  retained  in  the  second. 

3.  Let  them  be  turned  bax:k,  in  xl.  15  '  Let  them  be  desolate.' 
The  difference  in  Hebrew  is  of  one  letter  only,  and  the  change 
may  have  arisen  from  confusion.  The  earlier  form  reads,  '  that 
say  unto  me  ' ;  the  omission  of  the  words  '  unto  me  '  points  to  the 
adaptation  of"  a  personal  Psalm  to  liturgical  purposes. 

4.  The  name  Jehovah  is  again  changed  to  Elohim. 

5.  Instead   of  'The   Lord  thinketh   upon    me'    in  xl.   17,   the 


346  THE   PSALMS  71.  i 

Make  haste  unto  me,  O  God  : 
Thou  art  my  help  and  my  deliverer ; 
O  Lord,  make  no  tarrying. 

71  In  thee,  O  Lord,  do  I  put  my  trust : 


Elohist  reads,  Make  haste  unto  me,  O  God.     The  /  and  me  of 

this  verse  would  be  understood  in  public  worship  of  the  nation. 
In  the  last  line  the  usual  process  of  this  book  is  reversed  and 
'Jehovah'  substituted  for  *0  my  God,'  for  the  sake  of  variety  ; 
the  same  reason  applies  to  the  retention  of  Jehovah  in  the  second 
clause  of  verse  i. 

Psalm  LXXI.     Prayer  of  an  Aged  Saint. 

The  writer  of  this  Psalm  borrows  freely  from  earlier  pleadings 
of  a  similar  kind,  especially  in  Pss.  xxii,  xxxi,  xxxv,  and  xl.  But 
he  gives  to  his  work  a  character  of  its  own.  A  mosaic,  if  made 
up  of  small  pieces,  exhibits  them  combined  into  a  pattern  which 
they  cannot  possess  separately,  and  no  careful  reader  of  this  Psalm 
will  call  it  'a  mere  cento.' 

The  writer  was  apparently  an  old  man,  see  verses  9  and  18. 
The  form  of  words  used,  '  old  and  greyheaded,'  '  in  old  age,  when 
my  strength  faileth,'  seems  to  preclude  the  idea  that  the  Psalm 
was  in  the  first  instance  a  national  one  ;  for  though  a  nation  has 
its  stages  of  growth,  such  phrases  are  not  naturally  applied  to 
a  community'.  Verse  20  points  obviously  to  the  nation — for  the 
reading,  see  note.  No  advocate  of  the  personal  element  in  the 
Psalms  seeks  to  exclude  all  national  references,  but  protest  is 
necessary  when,  as  is  the  case  with  one  school  of  modern  critics, 
it  is  sought  to  exclude  the  personal  element  altogether  from  the 
religion  of  the  Psalms. 

The  date  is  post-Exilic,  see  verse  20.  The  LXX  has  the  curious 
compound  title  '  of  David,  of  the  sons  of  Jonadab  and  those  who 
were  first  carried  captive.'  If  this  inscription  be  not  altogether 
inept,  it  shows  that  in  the  opinion  of  the  editors  a  'Davidic' 
Psalm  might  also  in  somd  sense  be  a  Psalm  of  the  Exile.  The 
reference  to  the  Rechabites,  Jer.  xxxv,  may  point  to  the  adaptation, 
or  only  to  the  use  made,  of  an  earlier  composition.  Jeremiah  is 
held  to  have  been  the  author  by  Delitzsch,  Perowne,  and  others, 
and  in  some  respects  the  hypothesis  is  probable  enough  ;  compare 
e.  g.  Jer.  i.  5  with  verses  5  and  6 — but  the  language  of  the  Psalm  is 
too  general  to  wan-ant  more  than  conjecture. 

Strophical  arrangement  is  lacking,  nor  is  there  any  close 
connexion  of  thought  between  the  verses  ;  verses  1-3,  however, 


THE   PSALMS  71.  2-6  347 

Let  me  never  be  ashamed. 

Deliver  me  in  thy  righteousness,  and  rescue  me :  2 

Bow  down  thine  ear  unto  me,  and  save  me. 

Be  thou  to  me  a  rock  of  habitation,  whereunto  I  may  3 

continually  resort : 
Thou  hast  given  commandment  to  save  me ; 
For  thou  art  my  rock  and  my  fortress. 
Rescue  me,  O  my  God,  out  of  the  hand  of  the  wicked,     4 
Out  of  the  hand  of  the  unrighteous  and  cruel  man. 
For  thou  art  my  hope,  O  Lord  God  :  5 

Thou  art  my  trust  from  my  youth. 

By  thee  have  I  been  holden  up  from  the  womb :  6 

Thou  art  he  that  took  me  out  of  my  mother's  bowels : 
My  praise  shall  be  continually  of  thee. 


constitute  an  introduction,  and  verse  14  marks  a  point  of  transition 
from  past  to  future,  from  sorrow  to  joy,  from  prayer  to  praise. 

1.  The  first  three  verses  are  substantially  identical  with  xxxi, 
1-3.  Render,  as  in  many  other  cases,  '  In  thee  have  I  taken 
refuge.'  The  latter  half  of  the  verse  is  a  prayer,  well  known  as 
occurring  in  the  last  words  of  the  Te  Deum,  '  Let  me  never  be 
confounded.' 

2.  in  thy  rig'liteousness  is  the  opening  clause,  and  should  be 
emphasized.  Only  a  man  with  a  clear  conscience  can  cast 
Jiimself  upon  this  attribute  of  God  as  a  plea  in  prayer. 

3.  There  is  but  a  '  tittle  '  of  difference  in  the  Hebrew  between 
rock  of  habitation  and  'strong  rock'  (R.  V.  marg.).  The 
latter  is  the  reading  of  xxxi.  2,  and  of  LXX,  Targ.  and  other 
versions,  here  Baethgen  and  other  critics  consider  that  the  reading 
v/hereunto  I  may  continually  resort,  Thou  hast  ffiven  com- 
mandment (only  three  words  in  the  Hebrew)  has  arisen  from 
a  corruption  of  two  words  which  in  xxxi.  2  are  rendered  '  a  house 
of  defence.'  LXX  and  Vulg.  somewhat  favour  this  supposition; 
Syr.  Targ.  and  other  versions  correspond  to  A.  V.  and  R.  V.  For 
the  variety  of  figures  employed  to  describe  God  as  a  refnge, 
compare  the  opening  of  Ps.  xviii. 

5,  6.  Compare  Ps.  xxii.  9,  10.     Render  in  verse  6  : — 
'On  Thee  have  I  been  stayed  from  my  birth, 
From  my  mother's  womb  thou  hast  been  my  protector.' 
The  last  word  differs  slightly  from  the  parallel  one  in  xxii.  10,  but 


348  THE    PSALMS  71.  7-13 

7  I  am  as  a  wonder  unto  many ; 
But  thou  art  my  strong  refuge. 

8  My  mouth  shall  be  filled  with  thy  praise, 
And  with  thy  honour  all  the  day. 

9  Cast  me  not  off  in  the  time  of  old  age  ; 
Forsake  me  not  when  my  strength  faileth. 

10  For  mine  enemies  speak  concerning  me ; 

And   they  that   watch   for    my   soul   take   counsel   to* 
gether, 
IT  Saying,  God  hath  forsaken  him : 

Pursue  and  take  him ;  for  there  is  none  to  deliver. 
T  2  O  God,  be  not  far  from  me : 

O  my  God,  make  haste  to  help  me. 

is  translated    'protector*  or  'benefactor'  by   LXX,  Vulg ,   and 
leading  interpreters. 

7.  a  wonder — P.  B.  V.  *  monster,*  i.  e.  a  prodigy — nnto  many. 
In  what  sense  is  this  to  be  understood  ?  Ezekiel  was  to  be  a  sign 
to  the  people  (xii.  6,  11)  in  the  sense  that  his  acts  symbolized  the 
people's  fate;  compare  Isa.  viii.  187;  Zech.  iii.  80.  Again, 
punishment  may  be  '  for  a  sign  and  for  a  wonder '  (Deut.  xxviii. 
46),  or  as  we  say,  a  '  monument'  of  the  justice  and  wrath  of  God. 
But  the  phrase  of  Isa.  Hi.  14,  'many  were  astonied  at  thee,'  best 
illustrates  the  meaning  here.  The  spectacle  of  the  suffering 
servant  of  God  causes  all  to  wonder,  many  to  fear,  and  the  few 
faithful  ones  to  revere  and  trust  and  bear  to  the  uttermost. 

8.  The  sufferer  can  understand  what  others  think  so  strange. 
So  other  sufferers,  as  in  the  midst  of  the  seven-times  heated  furnace, 
or  in  the  stocks  at  Philippi,  have  been  strengthened,  and  have 
even  sung  praises  to  God. 

9.  In  spite  of  this  confidence  apprehension  begins  to  creep  over 
the  Psalmist's  spirit.  He  is  old,  and  while  the  spirit  is  willing, 
the  flesh  is  weak.  Perhaps  he  anticipates  death,  and  prays  that 
God  'will  not  suffer  him  in  his  last  hour  for  any  pains  of  death  to 
fall  from  Him.'  The  application  of  these  words  to  the  nation  may 
the  more  easily  be  made,  if  they  are  understood  to  have  been 
intended  first  of  all  in  a  personal  sense. 

10.  11.  Close  parallels  will  be  found  in  Pss.  xli.  Ivi,  &c.  'lay 
wait  for  my  soul,'  i.  e.  watch  to  take  my  life, 

12,  13.  Compare  Ps.  xxii,  xxxv,  xxxviii,  y.\.  Almost  the  whole 
of  the  phraseology'  of  these  verses  is  borrowed. 


THE   PSALMS  71.  13-19  349 

Let  them  be  ashamed  a/id consumed  that  are  adversaries  13 

to  my  soul  j 
Let  them  be  covered  with  reproach  and  dishonour  that 

seek  my  hurt. 
But  I  will  hope  continually,  14 

And  will  praise  thee  yet  more  and  more. 
My  mouth  shall  tell  of  thy  righteousness,  1 5 

Andoi  thy  salvation  all  the  day  ; 
For  I  know  not  the  numbers  thereof. 

I  will  come  with  the  mighty  acts  of  the  Lord  God  :  16 

I  will  make  mention  of  thy  righteousness,  even  of  thine 

only. 
O  God,  thou  hast  taught  me  from  my  youth  \  17 

And  hitherto  have  I  declared  thy  wondrous  works. 
Yea,  even  when  I  am  old  and  gray-headed,  O  God,  forsake  18 

me  not ; 
Until    I    have    declared    thy   strength    unto    the    next 

generation, 
Thy  might  to  every  one  that  is  to  come. 
Thy  righteousness  also,  O  God,  is  very  high  \  19 

14, 15.  Render,  *  but  as  for  me,  I  will,'  &c.  ;  a  strong  contrast 
is  drawn  here.  The  Divine  riglxteousness  is  paralleled  with 
salvaaon,  since  the  Psalmist  holds  that  God  is  pledged  to  deliver 
His  faithful  servant,  see  verse  2.  X  know  not  tlie  numbers 
thereof,  probably  suggested  by  xl.  5. 

16.  X  will  come,  i.  e.  into  the  house  of  God,  with  the  mighty 
acts  of  the  I^ord  Jehovah,  i.  e.  as  the  subject  of  thanksgiving. 
The  translation  of  R.  V.  marg.  and  A.  V.,  'I  will  go  in  the 
strength,'  &c.,  does  not  bring  out  the  meaning  of  the  plural,  and 
misses  the  parallel  with  the  next  clause. 

17,  18.  Remembrance  of  the  past  encourages  the  Psalmist  to 
pray  and  trust  for  the  future.  He  desires  to  be  spared  till  he  has 
shown  God's  strengrth,  lit.  'arm,'  i.e.  the  miglity  power  with 
which  God  supports  and  protects  His  people  and  leads  them  to 
victory,  uuto  the  generation  (following)  ;  compare  Ps.  xlviii,  13. 
That  this  is  the  meaning  is  shown  by  the  parallel  clause  '  every 
one  that  is  to  come.' 


350  THE   PSALMS  71.  20-24 

Thou  who  hast  done  great  things, 
O  God;  who  is  hke  unto  thee  ? 

20  Thou,  which  hast  shewed  us  many  and  sore  troubles, 
Shalt  quicken  us  again, 

And  shalt  bring  us  up  again  from  the  depths  of  the  earlh. 

21  Increase  thou  my  greatness. 
And  turn  again  and  comfort  me. 

22  I  will  also  praise  thee  with  the  psaltery, 
Even  thy  truth,  O  my  God : 

Unto  thee  will  I  sing  praises  with  the  harp, 
O  thou  Holy  One  of  Israel. 

23  My  lips  shall  greatly  rejoice  when  I  sing  praises  unto  thee  ; 
And  my  soul,  which  thou  hast  redeemed. 

24  My  tongue  also  shall  talk  of  thy  righteousness  all  the 

day  long : 

19.  who  is  like  unto  thee  ?     Compare  xxx v.  10. 

20.  Authorities  differ  as  to  whether  the  singular  'me,'  or  the 
plural  us  should  be  read  here.  The  written  text  {Cthibh)  of  the 
Hebrew  has  us,  but  the  Jews  in  reading  {ffri)  corrected  into 
'me'  (R.  V.  marg.).  The  versions  are  divided  in  the  second  and 
third  lines,  but  are  in  favour  of  '  me  *  in  the  first  line.  There  can 
be  little  question  that  the  plural  gives  the  meaning.  According 
to  the  interpretation  here  adopted,  the  Psalmist  after  uttering  his 
own  personal  experiences  turns  to  the  history  and  hopes  of  the 
nation.  According  to  the  ideas  prevalent  amongst  many  modem 
critics,  the  whole  Psalm  is  purely  national. 

from  the  depths  of  the  earth :  a  proverbial  phrase  for  the 
most  distant  regions  and  those  most  difficult  of  access,  or  it  may 
mean,  from  the  direst  perils  and  the  very  gates  of  death.  The 
word  translated  '  depths '  properly  means  *  abyss.*  This  confidence 
is  justified  from  the  point  of  view  both  of  personal  and  national 
history  :  but  God  has  His  own  way  of  quickening  and  restoring, 
quite  unexpected  either  by  Israel  as  a  whole  or  individual 
Psalmists. 

21.  In  this  prayer  the  individual  Israelite  undoubtedly  repre- 
sents the  nation  :  its  '■  greatness '  and  prosperity  will  bring 
personal  honour  and  happiness  to  the  Psalmist. 

22-24.  The  Psalm  closes  with  vows  of  thanksgiving  to  the 
redeeming  God.  Holy  One  of  Israel,  a  favourite  phrase  with 
Isaiah,  found  only  three  times  in  the  Psalms.     It  indicates  the 


THE  PSALMS  72.  i  351 

For  they  are  ashamed,  for  they  are  confounded,  that  seek 
my  hurt. 

A  Psalm  of  Solomon.  73 

Give  the  king  thy  judgements,,  O  God,  i 

moral  perfection  and  uniqueness  of  that  God  who  has  deigned  to 
enter  into  close  covenant-relationship  with  Israel.  The  last  lines 
find  parallels  in  xxxv.  4,  xl.  14. 

Psalm  LXXII.     The  Dominion  of  the  Lord's  Anointed. 

The  title  of  this  Psalm  is  rightly  given  by  R.  V.  as  of  Solomon, 
not  *  for  Solomon '  (A.  V.).  Few,  however,  are  now  found  to 
support  the  tradition  of  Solomonic  authorship,  though  Delitzsch 
is  content  to  do  so— and  Perowne  with  some  modifications — with 
the  view  that  the  king  is  praying  for  himself,  in  the  strong  desire 
that '  the  Messianic  ideal  might  be  realized  in  his  person  and  the 
Messianic  age  through  his  reign.'  On  the  other  hand  Cheyne, 
here  following  Hitzig,  would  attribute  the  Psalm  to  a  poet  of  the 
third  century  b.c,  the  king  celebrated  in  it  being  Ptolemy 
Philadelphus.  The  incredibilities  of  the  latter  theory  have  been 
touched  on  in  the  Introduction  to  Ps.  xlv. 

The  truth  seems  to  lie  midway  between  these  extremes.  An 
actual  king  of  Judah  is  probably  referred  to,  though  it  is  impossible 
to  decide  whether  it  be  Hezekiah  or  another.  And  it  is  the  less 
needful  to  conjecture,  inasmuch  as  nothing  in  the  Psalm  turns  upon 
the  personal  character  or  circumstances  of  the  actual  occupant  of 
the  throne.  The  Psalm  is  ideal  throughout,  '  Messianic '  in  the 
sense  that  God's  anointed  one  is  depicted,  not  as  he  so  often  was  ' 
in  fact,  but  as  he  ought  to  be,  as  the  Psalmist  hopes  he  one  day 
will  be.  Hence  prayer  merges  in  prophecy.  The  Targum 
interprets  throughout  of  the  Messiah,  and  the  Christian  Church 
has  freely  applied  the  Psalm  to  Christ,  though,  remarkably 
enough,  it  is  not  once  quoted  in  N.  T.  This  glowing  description 
of  God's  vicegerent  on  earth  is  best  read  without  primary 
reference  to  Solomon,  Hezekiah,  or  Ptolemy  Philadelphus,  but 
as  a  prophetic  prayer,  already  partly  fulfilled  after  a  fashion 
the  Psalmist  never  expected,  partly  still  awaiting  fulfilment — 
though  the  time  and  manner  of  that  ultimate  realization  are 
altogether  beyond  human  presage  and  conjecture. 

The  Psalm  forms  one  connected  whole,  but  a  break  may  perhaps 
be  found  at  the  end  of  verse  7,  the  first  section  referring  to  the 
relation  between  the  king  and  his  own  people ;  verses  8-14 
describe  the  spread  of  his  dominion  till  it  includes  the  whole 
earth;  verses  15-17  offer  sublime  prayers  for  the  monarch  and 


352  THE   PSALMS  72.  a 

And  thy  righteousness  unto  the  king's  son. 
2  He  shall  judge  thy  people  with  righteousness, 
And  thy  poor  with  judgement. 

his  descendants,  while  verses  i8  and  19  form  a  doxology  to  close 
Book  II,  and  verse  20  is  an  editorial  note  v^hich  forms  no  part 
of  the  sacred  text. 

1.  That  the  Psalm  is  pre-eminently  a  prayer  is  made  clear  by 
its  opening.  The  name  of  God  occurs  only  once  in  it,  but  this 
verse  governs  the  whole  interpretation.  God  is  asked  in  the 
opening  petition  to  grant  to  the  king  the  power  to  *  speak  as  the 
oracles  of  God,'  that  his  ordinances  and  acts  of  administration  — 
thy  judcrements — and  the  spirit  which  prompts  and  directs  them 
— tliy  rig'hteousness — may  be  in  accordance  with  the  Divine 
will.  In  Prov.  viii.  15,  16  princes  and  kings  are  said  to  govern 
by  virtue  of  Divine  wisdom  :  this  is  the  royal  ideal  in  Israel,  and 
the  Psalmist  prays  that  it  may  be  realized. 

The  phrase  the  king''s  sou  must  be  understood  as  a  synonym 
for  the  king  himself.  It  is  not  a  prayer  for  his  heir,  but  the  first 
line  of  the  verse  is  strengthened  by  a  parallel  in  the  second  ; 
compare  Prov.  xxx.  4,  *  What  is  his  name,  and  what  is  his  son's 
name,  if  thou  knowest?' 

2.  The  chief  question  of  interpretation  in  this  Psalm  is  the 
rendering  of  the  tenses,  whether  the  idea  is  best  conveyed  by 
simple  futures  as  in  A.  V.  and  R.  V.,  or  by  optatives  'May  be, 
Let  him  be ! '  &c.  Most  modern  commentators  adopt  the 
optative  throughout.  Others  consider  that  the  prayers  begin 
in  verse  8,  where  the  form  of  the  verb  changes,  but  would  use 
futures  in  verses  2-7.  If  verse  i  be  a  prayer,  and  the  whole 
Psalm  from  verse  8  onwards  be  prayer,  it  is  most  natural  to 
understand  the  intervening  verbs  also  as  optative,  and  this  seems 
to  give  the  meaning  of  the  Psalm  best.  It  may  escape  attention 
that  R.  V.  gives  the  interpretation  '  Lei  him  judge,  and  so 
throughout  the  Psalm,' a  place  in  its  margin.  From  the  exegetical 
point  of  view  this  is  to  be  preferred,  though  the  loss  in  the  sacred 
associations  of  familiar  words  is  considerable.  According  to 
R.  V.  text,  after  the  opening  prayer  the  Psalmist  passes  into  a 
direct  prophecy  of  a  coming  ideal  king,  which  is  continued  to  the 
close. 

The  two  leading  words  of  verse  i  are  repeated,  the  king  is  to 
administer  justice  to  all  classes  alike.  The  dangers  of  oppression 
under  irresponsible  Eastern  rulers  are  very  great ;  the  temptation 
to  '  crush '  and  *  grind  the  face  of  the  poor '  is  strong.  Amos, 
Isaiah,  and  other  prophets  sternly  denounce  this  evil,  and  the 
king  who  dealt  out  even-handed  justice  to  all  was  as  highly 
esteemed  as  he  was  rare,  see  verses  4  and  la. 


THE    PSALMS  72.  3-7  353 

The  mountains  shall  bring  peace  to  the  people, 

And  the  hills,  in  righteousness. 

He  shall  judge  the  poor  of  the  people, 

He  shall  save  the  children  of  the  needy, 

And  shall  break  in  pieces  the  oppressor. 

They  shall  fear  thee  while  the  sun  endureth, 

And  so  long  as  the  moon,  throughout  all  generations. 

He  shall  come  down  like  rain  upon  the  mown  grass : 

As  showers  that  water  the  earth. 

In  his  days  shall  the  righteous  flourish ; 

And  abundance  of  peace,  till  the  moon  be  no  more. 


3.  Render,  '  Let  the  mountains  and  the  hills  bring  forth  peace 
for  the  people — through  righteousness.'  Peace  is  represented  as 
the  gracious  fruit  which  will  grow  on  every  tree  and  every  hill- 
slope,  if  righteousness  prevail  under  the  rule  of  a  righteous  king. 
Compare  Isa.  xxxii.  17. 

4.  A  further  detailed  illustration  of  the  fact  that  the  fullest 
justice  includes  kindliness  and  clemency.  It  is  the  duty  of  the 
righteous  king  to  crush  the  oppressor,  and  so  to  protect  and 
preserve  the  needy  and  those  who  have  no  helper. 

5.  'May  they  fear  thee.'  This  cannot  of  course  refer  to  the 
king,  who  is  not  directly  addressed  throughout  the  Psalm.  It 
must  mean  God,  carrying  on  the  prayer  of  verse  i,  but  this  would 
break  the  connexion  of  thought.  Probably  LXX  and  Vulg., 
followed  by  several  modern  commentators,  preserve  the  right 
text,  and  we  should  read  : — 

*  May  he  endure  as  long  as  the  sun  and  while  the  moon 
doth  shine  {lit.  '  in  presence  of  the  moon ')  throughout  all 
generations ! ' 

6.  'Let  him  be  as  rain  coming  down'  on  meadows  newly 
mown,  and  therefore  prepared  to  receive  showers  more  readily. 
The  parched  roots  quickly  suck  up  the  refreshing  moisture,  and 
even  in  a  few  hours  the  brown  plain  will  be  green  with  verdure. 
It  may  be  said  that  it  is  but  a  small  part  of  human  woes  that  laws 
and  kings  can  cause  or  cure,  but  an  Eastern  king  can  almost 
by  his  fiat  change  desolation  into  tranquil  prosperity— certainly 
he  can  do  the  reverse. 

7.  In  this  verse  the  thought  follows  that  of  verse  3,  with  its 
mention  of  righteousness  and  peace;  the  figure  employed  is 
in  continuation  of  verse  6,  showing  what  kind  of  plants  will 
flourish  in  a  kingdom  thus  blessed  by  showers  of  royal  beneficence  ; 

A  a 


354  THE    PSALMS  72.  8-12 

8  He  shall  have  dominion  also  from  sea  to  sea, 
And  from  the  River  unto  the  ends  of  the  earth. 

9  They  that  dwell  in  the  wilderness  shall  bow  before  him ; 
And  his  enemies  shall  lick  the  dust. 

;  o  The  kings  of  Tarshish  and  of  the  isles  shall  bring  presents  : 
The  kings  of  Sheba  and  Seba  shall  offer  gifts. 

1 1  Yea,  all  kings  shall  fall  down  before  him  : 
All  nations  shall  serve  him. 

12  For  he  shall  deliver  the  needy  when  he  crieth ; 
And  the  poor,  that  hath  no  helper. 

whilst  an  echo  of  verse  5  is  found  in  the  note  of  perplexity,  '  till 
the  moon  be  no  more.' 

8.  The  Psalmist  passes  now  from  the  immediate  domain  of 
this  righteous  ruler,  and  enlarges  his  prayer  to  include  the 
influence  which  his  sway  will  exercise  over  surrounding  and 
distant  nations. 

A  change  in  the  form  of  the  verb  is  noticeable  from  this  versa 
to  the  eleventh,  from  sea  to  sea,  that  is,  according  to  the 
promise  of  Exod.  xxiii.  31,  from  the  Red  Sea  to  the  Mediterranean. 
'  From  the  River  to  the  ends  of  the  earth '  means  from  the 
Euphrates,  the  eastern  boundary  of  Jewish  thought,  to  the  dim 
unknown  western  regions  which  formed  the  limit  in  the  opposite 
direction.  In  i  Kings  iv.  21  Solomon  is  said  to  have  reigned 
'from  the  River  to  the  border  of  Egypt,'  and  see  verse  24. 
Geographical  considerations  are  not  to  be  pressed  here ;  the 
phraseology  is  employed,  as  in  Zech.  ix.  10,  in  a  proverbial  sense, 
for  dominion  extended  to  the  bounds  of  the  habitable  globe. 

9.  Various  tribes  and  nations  are  specified  as  doing  homage 
to  this  viceroy  of  the  great  king.  The  wilderness-dwellers  are 
the  nomad  Bedawin,  who  call  no  man  master. 

10.  11.  Tarshish,  Tartessus  in  South  Spain,  a  Phoenician 
colony,  was  the  great  commercial  centre  of  the  far  west.  Her 
ships  were  in  all  waters.  ' 

the  isles  is  a  general  name  for  the  coasts  of  the  Mediter- 
ranean ;  compare  Isa.  xlii.  4, 12.  Sheba  is  a  name  for  South-East 
Arabia,  i  Kings  x,  i.  The  meaning  of  Seba  is  more  doubtful,  but 
Josephus  gives  it  as  the  name  of  the  capital  of  Meroe  in  Ethiopia, 
All  these  regions  are  to  be  tributary  to  the  king  ;  i  Kings  iv. 
shows  that  Solomon's  influence  had  already  been  felt  in  most 
of  them. 

12,  13.  See  notes  on  verses  2  and  4.     The  basis  of  this  king's 
I  influence  rests  not  on  his  personal  prowess,  nor  upon  the  might  of 


THE    PSALMS  72.  i?,-i6  355 

He  shall  have  pity  on  the  poor  and  needy,  13 

And  the  souls  of  the  needy  he  shall  save. 

He  shall  redeem  their  soul  from  oppression  and  violence ;  14 

And  precious  shall  their  blood  be  in  his  sight : 

And  they  shall  live;  and  to  him  shall  be  given  of  the  15 

gold  of  Sheba : 
And  men  shall  pray  for  hhn  continually ; 
They  shall  bless  him  all  the  day  long. 
There  shall  be  abundance  of  corn  in  the  earth  upon  the  1 6 

top  of  the  mountains ; 
The  fruit  thereof  shall  shake  like  Lebanon  : 


his  armies,  but  upon  the  blended  righteousness  and  mercifulness 
of  his  rule. 

14.  Read  'from  fraud'  (R.V.  marg.)  and  violence,  the  two 
dangers  which  threaten  '  the  soul,'  i.  e.  the  life,  of  the  poor  in 
ill-governed  countries.  '  Precious  is  their  blood  ' — the  cheapness 
of  human  life  in  lands  where  kings  do  not  protect  it,  and  murderers 
escape  easily,  is  a  sadly  familiar  feature  of  history  in  some  lands. 
In  Ps.  cxvi.  15  the  death  of  saints  is  said  to  be  thus  ^  precious '  in 
the  sight  of  God  ;  He  watches  over  their  lives  and  will  not  lightly 
let  them  perish. 

15.  And  they  shall  live  :  according  to  the  reading  adopted  in 
R.  V.  text  this  means  the  poor  men  whose  lives  the  King  has 
preserved.  But  the  margin  reads  'he,'  and  it  is  better  to  place 
a  full  stop  at  the  end  of  verse  14,  and  refer  each  clause  in  this  verse 
to  the  King.  Render,  therefore,  'And  so  may  he  long  live  and 
may  there  be  given  to  him  .  .  .  may  men  pray  for  him  continually 
and  bless  him  all  the  day!'  The  latter  clauses  describe  the 
popular  regard  which  the  ruler  who  thus  cares  for  the  best  interests 
of  his  people  is  sure  to  win.  The  verbs  are  to  be  understood 
impersonally,  as  equivalent  to  passives  ;  people  shall  bring  him 
presents,  and  prayer  for  his  welfare  shall  be  offered  continually, 
celebrating  the  virtues  which  distinguish  his  reign. 

The  Hebrew  cannot  mean  '  prayer  unto  him.'  This  translation, 
which  has  found  its  way  into  many  versions,  is  a  note  of  the 
Messianic  interpretation  of  the  Psalm  which  has  obtained  from 
the  time  of  the  Targum  onwards. 

16.  'May  there  be  abundance  of  corn  in  the  land  '  :  the  rendering 
'handful.'  A.  V.  and  R.V.  marg,,  is  misleading  in  English,  as  if 
the  meaning  were  that  a  small  quantity  of  grain  should  multiply 

A  a  2 


356  THE   PSALMS  72.  17-19 

And  they  of  the  city  shall   flourish   like   grass   of  the 
earth. 

17  His  name  shall  endure  for  ever; 

His  name  shall  be  continued  as  long  as  the  sun  : 
And  men  shall  be  blessed  in  him ; 
All  nations  shall  call  him  happy. 

18  Blessed  be  the  Lord  God,  the  God  of  Israel, 
Who  only  doeth  wondrous  things  : 

19  And  blessed  be  his  glorious  name  for  ever; 

many  fold  and  the  small  beginnings  of  the  kingdom  have  great 
endings.  The  prayer  is  that  everywhere,  even  upon  the  hill-tops, 
^  there  may  be  fertility,  the  fields  of  corn  waving— or,  according  to 
'  some,  '  rustling ' — like  the  great  cedars  of  Lebanon  in  the  wind 
that  sweeps  across  the  mountains.  In  the  last  line  render,  '  And 
may  men  spring  forth  out  of  the  city  like  grass  of  the  earth.' 
The  country  fertile,  the  cities  populous— such  is  the  definition  of 
a  nation's  prosperity  ;  such  was  the  historian's  account  of  Judah 
and  Israel  in  the  days  of  Solomon,  '  many  as  the  sand  which  is  by 
the  sea  in  multitude,  eating  and  drinking  and  making  merry' 
I  Kings  iv.  20;  and  such  was  the  Psalmist's  hope  for  the  coming 
age. 

17,  18.  A  sample  of  the  prayers  for  the  king  mentioned  in  verse 
15.  '  May  his  name  endure  for  ever ! '  In  the  second  line  the 
marginal  rendering  'have  issue'  refers  to  the  dynasty,  that  it 
may  be  long  perpetuated.  The  literal  rendering  of  the  third  line 
is  found  in  the  margin,  *may  the  nations  bless  themselves  in  him.' 
This  alludes  to  the  promise  given  to  Abraham  in  Gen.  xxii.  18, 
and  implies  that  the  king  will  represent  to  the  nations  the  very 
type  of  perfect  prosperity,  so  that  they  can  pray  for  nothing  better 
than  to  be  as  he  is.  The  passive  be  blessed  gives  a  more  obvious 
meaning  and  reads  more  naturally  in  English,  especially  when 
understood  in  a  Messianic  sense,  but  the  conjugation  is  reflexive, 
and  the  more  exact  translation  of  R.  V.  marg.  should  at  least  be 
preserved  in  a  note. 

18,  19.  '  Blessed  be  Yahweh  Elohim,  God  of  Israel.'  A  dox- 
ology  appended  by  the  editor  to  Book  II.  See  xli.  13.  Whether 
the  fuller  form  of  the  doxology  here  be  due  to  the  fact  that  it 

'  follows  so  auspicious  and  glorious  a  Psalm  it  is  impossible  to 
say.  But  the  devout  reader  may  well  think  that  the  large  petitions 
of  Ps.  Ixxii  demand  a  doxology  which  shall  set  forth  the 
inexhaustible  resources  of  the    God  who  is   asked   to  do  these 


THE  PSALMS  72.  20  357 

And  let  the  whole  earth  be  filled  with  his  glory. 
Amen,  and  Amen. 

The  prayers  of  David  the  son  of  Jesse  are  ended.  2 

great  things,  and  that  seems  to  be  the  point  of  view  from  which 
these  verses  are  written. 

Amen,  and  Amen :  the  response  of  the  congregation.     The  , 
people  are  bidden  thus  to  respond  to  pubHc  prayer  and  praise  in 
Ps.  cvi.  48,  and  are  represented  as  so  doing  in  Neh.  viii.  6. 

20.  The  prayers  of  David  the  son  of  Jesse  are  ended.  A 
colophon  or  note,  probably  added  b}^  the  editor  of  the  Elohistic 
collection,  to  mark  the  end  of  a  group  of  '  Davidic '  Psalms, 
Book  III  contains  only  one  Psalm  'of  David,'  Ixxxvi,  but  Books 
IV  and  V  contain  several,  which  obviously  were  not  known  to 
this  compiler.  For  further  remarks  on  the  significance  of  this 
note,  see  Introd,  p.  7. 


NOTES 

Note  A.     Names  of  God. 

The  importance  of  names  in  tlie  O.  T.  must  have  been  noticed 
by  every  careful  reader.  The  '  name '  in  Hebrew  is  not  a  mere 
appellative,  it  stands  for  a  revelation  of  nature  or  character.  In 
the  case  of  the  Divine  Being,  the  subject  obviously  acquires 
a  special  importance.  The  following  notes  on  the  subject  may  be 
found  of  use  in  reading  the  Psalms. 

1.  The  proper  name  of  the  God  of  Israel,  known  as  the  Tetra- 
grammaton,  &c.,  as  consisting  of  the  four  letters  J  H  V  H,  occurs 
nearly  7,000  times  in  O.  T.  It  was  ^  the  name,'  Lev,  xxiv.  11 ;  '  the 
glorious  and  fearful  name/  Deut.  xxviii.  58.  The  current  pro- 
nunciation in  English,  Jehovah,  is  an  et^'mological  monstrosity  ; 
it  consists  of  the  consonants  of  one  Hebrew  word  and  the  vowels 
of  another.  It  has  only  been  in  use  since  the  Reformation,  but 
during  three  centuries  has  become  so  familiar  as  an  English  word 
that  its  retention  at  present  is  unavoidable.  Controversy  has 
arisen  both  as  to  the  correct  pronunciation  and  the  meaning  of 
J  H  V  H.  As  to  pronunciation,  it  may  be  said,  in  a  word,  that 
a  general  consensus  now  fixes  it  as  *  Yahweh,'  and  as  such  it  is 
transliterated  in  this  volume. 

As  to  the  meaning  of  the  name,  an  explanation  is  given  in  Exod. 
iii.  14,  of  which  R.  V.  marg.  shows  that  alternative  translations  are 
possible.  The  derivation  there  suggested  furnishes  the  meanings 
'  He  who  is  '  or  '  He  who  will  be,'  thus  laying  stress  on  the  reality 
and  permanence  of  the  Divine  existence  and  the  assurance  implied 
in  the  name  that  God  will  ever  be  to  His  people  all  that  they  need 
and  all  that  the  idea  of  a  God  implies.  Critics  have  objected  both 
to  the  derivation  and  explanation  given  by  their  sacred  writer,  but 
without  supplying  a  satisfactory  alternative.  It  is  probable  that 
the  name  was  an  ancient  one,  see  Gen.  iv.  26  ;  Exod.  vi.  20  (if 
Jochebed  =  '  Yahweh  is  glory  '  ,  and  at  the  time  of  Moses  it  was 
not  so  much  newly  reveajed  (Exod.  vi.  2)  as  invested  with  new 
and  specially  sacred  significance.  From  this  period  onwards 
Yahweh  remains  the  distinctive  name  for  the  Covenant  God  of 
Israel,  who  throughout  their  history  takes  Israel  to  Him  for  a 
people  and  is  to  them  a  God  (Exod.  vi.  7). 

2.  Elohim  is  a  generic  name  for  God,  occurring  between  2,000 
and  3,000  times  in  O.  T.  It  is  a  plural  word,  the  singular  Eloah 
being  found  fift3'-seven  times,  chiefly  in  Job,  and  entirely  in  poetical 
passages.  It  is  used  of  heathen  deities,  designating  either  one  or 
many  such  ;   also  in  a  secondary  sense,  of  supernatural  beings, 


NOTE   A  359 

translated  bometimes  as  '  angels,'  Ps.  viii.  5  A.  V.  and  R.  V.  uiarg. 
Compare  also  Ps.  xxix.  i.  Ixxxii.  6,  xcvii.  7,  and  Job  i.  6.  The 
derivation  is  uncertain,  but  probably  implies  an  object  of  reverence 
or  religious  awe.  The  use  of  the  plural  has  been  described  as 
a  relic  of  earlier  polytheism,  or  a  proof  that  other  supernatural 
beings  were  associated  with  God,  forming  a  kind  of  court  of  the 
great  King ;  but  these  contentions  have  not  been  established,  and 
it  is  best  understood  as  a  plural  of  majesty  or  dignity,  familiar  in 
Hebrew  and  easily  intelligible.  This  word,  descriptive  of  the 
Deity  in  general,  not  the  specific  God  of  Israel,  came  into  more 
frequent  use  in  later  times,  as  a  false  reverence  shrank  from  the 
employment  of  the  sacred  name. 

A  kindred  word  El  is  used  more  than  200  times  in  O.  T., 
seventy-three  times  in  the  Psalms,  usually  in  poetry.  It  is  supposed 
to  be  derived  from  a  root  meaning  *the  Strong  One,'  but  no 
certainty  can  be  ascribed  to  this. 

3.  Shaddai  occurs  about  forty  times,  chiefly  in  Job ;  it  is 
adjectival  in  form,  and  is  used  six  times  with  El.  Exod.  vi.  3  gives 
it  as  the  name  of  God  used  by  the  patriarchs.  Its  derivation  is 
uncertain  ;  the  meanings  '  sufficient '  and  '  destroyer '  are  sup- 
ported by  some,  others  connect  it  with  an  Assyrian  root  meaning 
'to  be  high.'  The  traditional  meaning  'Almighty'  is  at  least  as 
probable  as  any  of  these. 

4.  Elyon  occurs  more  than  thirty  times  in  O.  T.,  usually  as  an 
appellation  with  El  or  Yahweh,  sometimes  however  standing  alone. 
The  meaning  is  unquestionable — God  '  Most  High  ' ;  the  Phoeni- 
cians appear  to  have  employed  a  similar  word.  It  is  found  some 
twenty  times  in  the  Psalms,  and  is  considered  by  Prof.  Cheyue  to 
be  a  mark  of  late  date.  He  says  '  the  Levitical  poets  have  a  special 
predilection  for  this  name,*  and  in  his  note  on  Ps.  vii.  18,  'The 
widening  influence  of  foreign  sojourn  opened  the  eyes  of  the  Jews 
to  the  usefulness  of  this  ancient  word-symbol.'  The  name  was 
ancient,  however,  very  ancient,  if  Gen.  xiv  is  to  be  trusted,  and 
used  by  non-Israelites  (Num.  xxiv.  16;  Isa.  xiv.  14).  It  would 
not  be  safe  to  regard  its  use  as  a  criterion  of  date  either  in  the 
Psalms  or  elsewhere. 

5.  The  word  Adonai,  properly  a  plural  with  first  pronominal 
suffix,  and  meaning  'my  lord,'  is  used  more  than  100  times  as 
a  proper  name  for  God  ;  it  is  the  word  from  which  the  vowels  of 
'  Jehovah  '  have  been  supplied. 

6.  Lord  of  Hosts,  Tsebaoth.  The  full  title  is  Yahweh,  God  of 
hosts,  see  Hos.  xii.  5;  the  most  frequent  form  is  •  Yahweh  of  hosts/ 
•Elohim  of  hosts'  is  fairly  common,  and  the  title  Adonai  is  sometimes 
prefixed.  This  is  emphatically  the  prophetic  name  of  God  ;  out  of 
282  instances,  246  belong  to  the  prophetical  writings.  It  does  not 
occur  in  the  Pentateuch,  and  only  fifteen  times  in  the  Psalms. 
The  earlier  meaning  of  the  title  had  reference  to  military  matters  ; 


36o  THE    PSALMS  (1-72) 

God  is  described  as  the  God  of  armies,  especially  tlie  armies  of 
Israel.  See  Sam.  xvii.  45.  But  in  the  prophets  the  hosts  are 
unquestionably  celestial,  either  stars  or  angels,  probably  the  former, 
as  furnishing  a  chief  proof  of  the  omnipotence  and  sovereignty 
of  the  great  Ruler  of  all,  Isa.  xl.  26.  The  LXX  understood  the 
word  in  this  sense,  and  their  paraphrase  '  The  All-Sovereign  One' 
reproduces  the  prevailing  Hebrew  idea. 

Note  B.     Use  of  the  term  'Chasid.' 

The  word  in  question  is  an  adjective  derived  from  the  noun 
chesed,  generally  rendered  'lovingkindness.'  The  substantive  is 
chiefly  employed  to  denote  the  gracious  love  shown  by  God  to 
His  people,  sometimes  it  describes  the  kindness  of  man  to  man, 
very  rarely  the  duteous  love  of  man  to  God.  The  adjective  is  found 
about  twenty-five  times  in  the  Psalter,  only  five  or  six  times  else- 
where in  O.  T.  So  far  as  its  form  is  concerned,  it  may  have  either  an 
active  or  passive  signification,  and  denote  either  the  man  who 
exercises  the  quality  of  chesed,  i.  e.  kind,  merciful,  or  one  to  whom 
this  quality  is  shown— an  object  of  Divine  love  and  favour.  Kirk- 
patrick,  following  Hupfeld,  argues  for  the  latter  meaning,  adducing 
the  fact  that  in  fifteen  instances  the  word  is  found  with  a  pronoun, 
'  my,'  'thy,'  'his,'  i.e.  God's  chasidint,  the  context  favouring  the 
idea  that  God's  grace  to  His  people  is  intended,  rather  than  their 
own  virtuous  dispositions.  Most  modern  critics,  however,  take 
the  other  view,  Cheyne  translating  chasid  as  '  man  of  love,'  and 
Driver  holding  that  it  properly  signifies  *  kind,'  though  in  later 
usage  it  came  to  denote  the  '  pious  '  generally.  See  an  interesting 
note  on  the  word  in  his  Parallel  Psalter,  p.  443.  Schultz,  in  his 
Old  Testament  Theology,  says  that  '  the  meaning  of  the  word 
certainly  seems  to  have  oscillated  between  "  he  who  possesses  the 
attribute  chesed,  plus  "  and  "he  who  experiences  the  chesed  oi  God 
towards  himself,'' the  beloved  of  God'  (ii.  23  note).  And  Prof. 
Cheyne  marks  what  he  calls  the  '  specializing  use  of  the  term  '  to 
denote  *  those  who  responded  to  God's  covenant-love  of  Israel  by 
obeying  His  commands  at  all  cost  and  believing  the  promises  of 
his  torah '  {Baiupton  Lectures,  p.  117). 

In  the  later  portion  of  Jewish  history  the  word  Chasidim  became 
the  name  of  a  party  more  cir  less  closely  defined.  In  i  Mace.  ii.  42 
we  read,  'Then  were  gathered  together  unto  them  a  company  of 
Hasidaeans,  mighty  men  of  Israel,  every  one  that  offered  himself 
willingly  for  the  law.  .  .  .  And  they  mustered  a  host,  and  smote 
sinners  in  their  anger,  and  lawless  men  in  their  wrath.'  But  it 
would  be  an  anachronism  to  read  this  almost  technical  meaning  of 
the  word  into  the  passages  of  general  import  in  which  it  is  found 
in  the  Psalter;  for  only  in  the  special  sense  named  is  the  word 
'distinctively    Maccabaean.'     'Hasidaean,'    hke    the    still    later 


NOTE  B  361 

*  Zealot,'  is  a  party  name,  and  marks  the  incipient  degeneration  of 
a  noble  word. 

It  is  impossible  to  find  a  single  English  word  which  will  exactly 
cover  the  area  occupied  by  the  Hebrew.  A.  V.  and  R.  V.  employ 
'  godly,'  '  merciful,'  '  holy,*  and  '  saints '  as  renderings.    R.  V.  uses 

*  holy '  once  only,  in  xvi.  10  ;  '  merciful '  once,  in  xviii.  26  (of  God 
and  man) ;  '  gracious '  once,  in  cxlv.  17  (of  God) ;  *  godly '  six  times, 
and  'saints '  sixteen  times.  The  use  of  *  holy  '  in  A.  V.  of  Ixxxvi. 
2  is  distinctly  misleading,  and  this  translation  has  probably  been 
retained  in  R.  V.  of  xvi.  10  for  special  reasons.  The  meaning 
'  merciful '  is  quite  exceptional  in  the  Psalter,  whilst  the  phrase 
'one  whom  God  favoureth  '  is  employed  once  only,  in  xii.  2  (R.  V. 
marg.).  We  are  disposed  to  think  that  the  Revisers  have  suc- 
ceeded admirably  in  reproducing  the  shades  of  meaning  in  their 
English  renderings  of  chasid  from  first  to  last.  In  iv.  2,  the  first 
occasion  of  its  use,  the  justice  of  the  remark  of  Schultz  quoted 
above  is  shown,  a  measure  of  ambiguity  is  unavoidable,  but  the 
idea  of  Divine  favour  predominates  over  that  of  human  piety.  The 
prevailing  use,  however,  is  fairly  represented  by  'godly,'  whilst 
in  the  later  Psalms  there  is  a  marked  tendency  to  regard  such  men 
as  forming  a  recognized  class,  who  may  be  described  as  God's 
'saints'  in  the  higher  and  finer  meaning  of  the  word.  The 
chasidini  or  '  pious  ones  '  of  the  Psalter  are,  therefore,  those  who, 
being  privileged  to  enjoy  the  covenant-love  of  Jehovah,  respond 
to  it  by  loyal  devotion  to  the  will,  the  worship,  and  the  precepts 
of  their  gracious  God. 

Note  C.     The  Cherubim. 

Though  this  word  occurs  only  thrice  in  the  Psalter — xviii.  10  ; 
Ixxx.  I  ;  xcix.  I — it  seems  desirable  to  give  a  somewhat  fuller 
account  of  it  than  is  possible  in  the  notes  on  individual  verses. 
Its  etymology  is  uncertain.  Conjectures  connect  it  with  a  Syriac 
word  meaning '  strong,'  an  Assyrian  word  Kinibu  which  might 
present  the  analogy  of  the  winged  bull  of  the  inscriptions,  the 
Egyptian  xcrep,  the  Greek  gmps.  and  our  own  '  griffin ' ;  but  these 
are  little  more  than  guesses  from  which  little  light  proceeds. 
Cherubim  are  mentioned  in  passages  of  very  various  import  from 
Genesis  to  Ezekiel,  in  the  symbolism  of  the  ark  and  in  the  poetry 
of  later  Psalmists.  They  are  represented  as  composite  creatures, 
with  the  wings  of  birds  and  the  bodies  of  terrestrial  animals  ;  and 
thus,  combining  the  strength  of  the  earth  with  the  swiftness  of  the 
wind,  they  aptly  symbolize  the  manifold  forces  of  nature.  In  this 
capacity  they  are  described  alike  in  prophetic  vision  and  in  sacred 
art  as  attending  upon  the  Deity  and  helping  to  enhance  the  glory 
of  His  manifested  presence.  At  the  same  time,  no  precise  shape 
is  assigned  to  them  ;  the  fact  that  these  only  of  living  creatures 


362  THE  PSALMS  (1-72) 

were  portrayed  in  the  tabernacle  and  the  temple  without  any 
violation  of  the  second  commandment  shows  that  they  were 
regarded  only  as  ministers  of  the  Most  High,  while  as  His 
ministers  they  occupied  a  place  in  His  court,  to  signify  His  regal 
state  and  perform  His  behests.  In  Eden  they  serve  to  guard  the 
tree  of  life  ;  in  the  ark  they  cover  the  mercy-seat  with  their  wings ; 
in  Lhe  temple  more  highly  elaborated  figures  were  devised  for  the 
same  purpose,  and  they  were  represented  in  the  carved  woodwork 
of  the  doors  and  walls  (i  Kings  vi.  29,  32,  35).  In  Ezek.  xxviii.  14 
the  prince  of  Tyre  is  compared  to  a  cherub  as  a  chosen  attendant 
of  God  in  His  holy  mountain,  and  in  chs.  i  and  x  the  prophet's 
symbolism  becomes  complex  and  not  easily  intelligible,  though 
in  these  sublime  visions  the  general  idea  of  the  cherubim  as  living 
forces,  bearing  up  the  chariot  of  Jehovah,  waiting  on  His  will, 
and  attending  His  progress,  is  impressively  conveyed. 

The  name  and  idea  of  these  strange  creatures  may  have  originated 
in  primitive  myth,  but  in  Biblical  usage  fabulous  and  superstitious 
elements  have  disappeared,  while  the  symbolic  meaning  remains. 
In  the  Psalms  the  usage  is  twofold.  In  xviii.  10  the  cherub  stands 
for  the  swift  storm-cioud  on  which  the  Divine  Being  rides  when 
He  appears  to  assert  His  majesty  and  deliver  His  servant ;  compare 
civ.  3.  In  Ixxx.  I  and  xcix.  i — where  a  reference  is  clearly  in- 
tended to  2  Kings  xix.  15  ;  Isa.  xxxvii.  16 — the  Revisers'  text 
reads  'Thou  that  sittest  HP^"/  ^^'^  their  margin,  *Thou  that 
dwellest  between  the  cherubim.'  The  former  is  more  literal.  The 
powers  of  nature  form,  as  it  were,  a  throne  on  which  God  is  seated 
(compare  xxii.  3) ;  they  are  present  in  that  abode  of  glory  in  which 
He  resides  ;  and  from  the  midst  of  a  cherub-supported  throne  He 
dispenses  justice  and  grace  alike  to  His  worshippers.  This  inter- 
pretation is  borne  out  by  later  Rabbinic  legends,  which  describe 
various  orders  of  angelic  beings,  cherubim  amongst  them,  whose 
function  it  was  to  support  the  throne  of  God  or  bear  up  His  'glory' 
as  He  passes  on  His  triumphal  way. 

In  reading  the  Psalms  it  is  important  to  remember  that  these 
references  are  highly  poetical.  They  were  so  intended  by  the 
writers,  and  they  were  so  understood  by  those  who  in  old  time 
read  or  sang  the  praises  of  Israel.  Whilst  some  light  upon  this 
obscure  subject  may  be  gained  by  the  study  of  Semitic  and  other 
mythologies,  the  sacred  writers  have  treated  it  in  their  own  wa\ 
and  stamped  it  with  their  own  impress,  their  one  object  being  not 
to  interfere  with,  but  to  heighten  and  emphasize  the  incomparable- 
majesty  of  God.  And  even  yet,  in  divers  languages  and  countries, 
few  nobler  or  mone  impressive  descriptions  can  be  found  of  God 
as  abiding  in  His  temple  or  appearing  in  the  storm  than  those 
which  speak  of  Him  as  'dwelling  between  the  cherubim,'  or 
which  declare  that  '  He  rode  upon  a  cherub  and  did  fly,  and  came 
swooping  upon  the  wings  of  the  wind.' 


INDEX 


Abimelech,  171,  279. 
Absalom,  53,  54,  221. 
Achish,  171,  279. 
Acrostic  Psalms,  71,  132. 
Addt'r,  289. 
Adonai,  359. 
Adullam,  284. 
Ahithophel,  216,  273. 
Aijeleth  hash-Shahar,  i6,  118. 
Alamoth,  15,  240. 
Alexander,  Bishop,  117. 
Alexander  Jannaeus,  50. 
Al-ntuth-labben,  248. 
Alphabetic  structure,  190. 
Al-tashheth,  284. 
Ambrose,  42. 
Amen,  357. 
Anatolius,  83. 
Anavim,  172. 
Angel  of  Jehovah,  173. 
Antiochus,  152,  221,  301. 
Aramaisms,  12. 
Artaxerxes  Ochus,  230. 
Asap]).  254. 
Asaphic  Psalms,  7. 
Ascents,  Songs  of,  8. 
Athanasius,  42. 
Augustine,  164. 
Askam,  17,  201. 

Baethgen,  86,  138,  178,  &c. 
Bashan,  121. 
Bath-sheba,  162, 
Benjamin,  335. 
Beth-horon,  179. 

Calvin.  83. 
Chanith,  178. 


Chasid,  57,  92,  360. 
Cherubim,  100,  361. 
Cheyne,   51,   75,   87,   97,    117, 

162,  &c. 
Chiasmus,  309. 
Chronicles,  Book  of,  ai. 
Chrysostom,  42. 
Chiippah,  109. 
Columba,  174. 
Coverdale,  86. 
C'thibh,  350. 

Davidic  Psalms,  23. 

Deborah,  20. 

Dedication  of  house,  17. 

Dedication,  feast  of,  152. 

Delitzsch,  26,  117,  148. 

Distich,  34. 

Divine  names,    204,  205,   285, 

2931  327. 
Doeg,  266,  267. 
Driver,  23,  &c. 
Duhm,  26. 


Edom,  296. 

Eduth,  no. 

El,  107. 

Elim,  149. 

Eloah,  358. 

Elohim,  70,  137,  210,  230,  254, 

255,  358. 
Eloi,  119. 

Elyon^  68,  100,  243,  359. 
Ethan,  11,  206. 
Ethiopia,  336. 
Ewald,  133,  138,  &c. 
Ezra,  152. 


364 


THE    PSALMS  (1-72) 


Faithfulness,  214. 
Fool,  84. 

Gittith,  15,  69. 

Hagiographa,  5. 

Hallel,  8. 

Handbreadths,  208. 

Hebron,  284. 

Heman,  11,  206. 

HeykdL  59. 

Hezekiah,  191. 

Higgaion,  15,  74. 

Hiram,  238. 

Hupfeld,  269,  277,  324,  &c. 

Hyssop,  263. 

Imprecatory  Psalms,  177,  342. 
Isles,  354. 

Jashar,  Book  of,  30. 
Jeduthun,  206,  304. 
Jehovah,  358. 
Jeremiah,  62,  177,  &c. 
John  Hyrcanus,  231. 
Jonah,  157. 
Jonathan,  83. 
Jonath-elevn  rechokim,  16. 
Judah,  Wilderness  of,  307. 

Kadesh,  150. 

K<xm,  266. 

Kay,  315. 

Keren,  98. 

Kinnor,  167,  287. 

Kirkpatrick,  120,  125,  185,  224, 

307,  338,  &c. 
Korah,  220. 
Korahitic  Psalms,  7. 

Lamech,  Song  of,  31. 

Lamentations,  20. 

Lilies,  234. 

Lord  of  Hosts.  131,  132,  241. 

Loves,  Song  of,  234. 

Lovingkindness,  214. 

Luther,  240. 


Maccabaean  Psalms, 26,  27,  227.     \ 
Maccabaeus,  Judas,  152.  \ 

Maclaren,  51,  163.  i 

Magcn,  61,  98.  j 

Magoy-Missabib,  155,  159,  ; 

Mahalath,  16.  j 

Marriage,  Song  of,  232. 
Maschil,  16,  162,  221,  234,  267, 

271. 
Massoretic  text,  19,  223. 
Matsur,  98. 
Mediterranean,  354. 
Meek,  the,  194.  ' 

Memuhahj  126. 
Messianic  Psalms,  114. 
Metre,  34. 
Micah,  180. 
Michtam,  16,  89,  284. 
Milton,  67. 
Minchah,  213. 
Misgab,  98. 
A/is/ipatim,  no. 
Mitzvah,  no. 
Mizar,  224. 
Mizmor,  4,  53. 
Moses,  Song  of,  20,  169. 
Muth-labbeu,  16. 
Musician,  chief,  14,  56. 

Nathan,  98. 
Nebhel,  167,  287. 
Neginoth,  15. 
Nehiloth,  15. 
Nitim,  186. 

;  'Olah,  213,  266. 

!  Olshausen,  186. 

I  Ophir,  237. 

i  Oman,  151. 

Parallelism,  35. 
j    Parasha,  47. 
j    Pekudim,  no. 

Penitential    Psalms,    62,    200, 
260. 

Perowne,  83. 

Persian  influence,  89. 


INDEX 


365 


Praises,  119. 

Psalms  of  Solomon,  10. 

Psalterion,  167. 

Ptolemy  Philometor,  324. 

Ptolemy  Philadelphus,  233, 351. 

QVi,  350. 

Qinahy  109, 

Rabshakeh,  230,  246. 

Remembrance,  to  bring  to,  245. 

Rhyme,  33. 

Riddles,  32. 

Robertson  Smith.  6,  15,  18.  87, 

261,  &c. 
Royal  Psalms,  22. 

Sabbath  Day.  Song  for,  18. 

Sacrifice,  213. 

Sugar,  178. 

Saul,  79,  181. 

Seba,  354. 

Sela\  98. 

Selah,  14,  74,  113,  164,  277. 

Sennacherib,  239. 

Septuagint,  39. 

Shachath,  91. 

Shakespeare,  108. 

Sheba,  354. 

Shelamint,  188, 

Sheminith,  15. 

Sheol,  63,  74,  91.  9a,  154. 

Shepherd,  125,  127. 

Shoshannim,  16,  338. 

Shushan  Eduth,  297. 

Shiggaion,  16,  64. 

Shir,  4,  151. 

Siloah,  241. 

Simon,  112,  301. 

Sinai,  332. 

Sirach,  son  of,  197. 


Sirion,  150. 

Solomon,  50,  351. 

Songs,  322. 

Spear,  178. 

Stanley,  129,  2^5. 

Stanza,  34. 

Sternhold  and  Hopkins,  41. 

Stranger,  210. 

Stringed  instruments,  322. 

Strophe,  34. 

Tabernacles,  322. 

Targum,  40,  121,  279,  280,  320. 

Tarshish.  354, 

Tate  and  Brady,  41. 

Tehillitn,  4. 

Te  Deum,  171. 

Tertullian,  42. 

Theodore  of  Mopsuestia,  112. 

Torah,  no. 

Tsur,  98. 

Uriah,  265. 

Versions,  40. 

Watson,  W.,  76. 
Well,  Song  of,  31. 
Wellhausen,  loi. 
Westcott,  236. 
Wisdom,  85. 

Yahweh,    69,     107,    210,    220, 

255'  &c, 
Yir'ah^  no. 

Zalmon,  331. 
Zebach,  213. 
Ziklag,  161. 
Ziphites,  271. 
Zophar,  192. 


OXFORD:    HORACE  HART 
PRINTER   TO  THE  UNIVERSITY 


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